Every new year we create new resolutions and every year they seem to get harder and harder to stick to. Whether it’s losing fat, building muscle or simply trying to get healthier, dropping off after a couple of weeks seems to become the norm.
However, after reading this article things will change. Becoming the healthier, best-performing version of you will be a lot easier and any walls in your way will feel trivial.
So, without further ado, here are the most common obstacles and mistakes people run into when sticking to their new year’s resolution
1.Make Them Realistic
Many people make the initial mistake when deciding on a resolution. It’s easy to say ‘I’m going to lose 60lbs in 3 months’ or ‘I’m going to pack on 20lbs of muscle before mid-February’ but unless you’re superhuman these aren’t achievable.
Going too fast can actually be dangerous to your health. If you drop too low in calories from the offset then sure, you will lose weight but you’ll also become lethargic, sick and stressed as well as a variety of other problems. Your body will adapt to this drop in calories by trying to match your metabolic rate to your new caloric intake as a survival mechanism. Suddenly you’ll find that your weight loss has plateaued. What do you do then? Drop lower in calories and damage your body more. This can lead to eating disorders such as binging due to your body’s increased appetite.
Instead, you need to work in baby steps. Targets such as dropping a pound a week or adding half a pound of muscle are far more realistic. Taking out 200 calories opposed to 600 will be enough to drop fat and keep you healthy.
You not only need to think of yourself physically, but mentally also. A common resolution is to only eat ‘clean’ foods or going cold turkey from things like junk food, smoking or alcohol. Yet, if you’re so used to these activities then completely cutting them out of your life is going to be extremely stressful. Taking the long route by slowly taking them out of your lifestyle will be far easier to stick to and far more enjoyable. In the race between the tortoise and the hare, going slowly wins the race.
2. Don’t Give Up
This may seem obvious but often we wait for the first sign of weakness in order to completely jump ship. If goals were easy, then they wouldn’t be worth getting. Being overweight is one of the most prevalent risks of life-threatening diseases, if staying slim were as simple as trying then we wouldn’t have the obesity epidemic that we have now.
This goes the same for building muscle. How many people do you see wandering around looking like stage models? Not very many. So why do so many people expect to look like elite bodybuilders after a few weeks of working out? Building muscle takes a lot longer than losing fat so you have to be in it for the long haul. If you’re like most people who want to lose fat and build muscle then it’s going to take even longer.
If you’re the type of person who gives up when they step on the scale and your weight hasn’t changed then you need to keep in mind that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Building the body you aspire to have will take time, a lot longer than you probably think. Yet, through consistency and hard work then you will have it and it’ll feel better than you ever imagined.
3. Make Your Goals Known
It can be embarrassing to let people know about your fitness goals. You might worry that people are gonna think you’re vain or looking for attention. However, letting people know about your goals can be a key step in achieving them.
Think about it, you’re far more likely to stick to your goals if other people are checking in with you and asking for updates than if you’re going to the gym in secret and constantly avoiding social events because you don’t want people to find out your on a diet. Public accountability is the best source of motivation. You won’t want to fail and be known as ‘that person’ who doesn’t stick things out to the end.
So, tell your friends, family and post it on social media to let everyone know. Don’t be embarrassed about trying to become the best version of you. You may even inspire others to do the same and change for the better.
Jarrett
