Are You Sticking with Your New Year’s Fitness Resolutions?

Last updated on December 2nd, 2014 at 10:24 am

We are officially three weeks into the new year. Do you know where your New Year’s fitness resolutions are?

Your aren’t alone in trying to keep up with the big “get healthy” plans you had way back on January 1st.  It’s not uncommon for people to quit a new diet and exercise regimen within the first 3 months of starting it.

As I mentioned in my post at the new year, “Avoid These Weight Loss Resolutions” the number one resolution at the top of most people’s New Year’s bucket lists are to get fit. The sad news is that 73% of us will give up on getting fit before we reach our goal.

If you’ve had getting fit on your New Year’s to-do list for years, you are just like the majority of people in the U.S.

The average New Year’s fitness resolution is dropped 4 times before taking action.

I was the poster-child for this statistic! For years and years I delayed converting my habits to a healthier lifestyle. My very first fitness goal began with the classic desire to look my best for my wedding day.

That came and went with a very small weight loss, and was followed by slow gaining over the next several years. Then the New Year’s resolution was added to my to-do list of goals once again the year I turned 40, and then again at age 41. Then something clicked.

I’ve had so many women ask what caused me to stick with my fitness resolution this time around.

Honestly, I was sick of hearing myself talk about it!

I had your typical mental stumbling blocks over “It’s too hard,” “I don’t have time,” “What if I fail?”  I can acknowledge that it’s hard to begin working out, it’s hard to stick to working out and a healthier way of eating (what? I can have my old stand by mac & cheese?), and it’s hard to get started again when you stop–for whatever reason.

I too experienced this stopping again while trying to figure out my workout schedule the first couple weeks of this year. Trips to the gym and work-out boot-camp where scheduled on my calendar, but I wasn’t taking my lunch breaks to go running like I had been doing to allow myself some calorie leeway–I love my good wine!

A little stress and some work projects squeezed out my running time at lunch. The funny thing is, I didn’t really notice how long it had been since I had been regularly running at lunch, until last week, when I added up how many days I had until my next marathon and I panicked at my lack of running during the week.

The first day back on track was a pain. Literally. My husband did his best not to laugh when my coughing fit from breathing so hard led to my saying “Ow!” in between each cough.

Sore stomach muscles may not be funny, but the good news is that the pain doesn’t last forever.

We are midway to 6 weeks into the New Year, just when half of those with fitness New Year resolutions will completely bail on sticking with them.

I had to check in on how you are doing with your own New Year’s healthier lifestyle resolutions.

How do you plan on removing any fitness resolutions stumbling blocks that may come up? Do you have a contingency plan?

Go get your fit on – Heather