You may be thinking, “This is going to be the year.” Looking back over the past year may motivate some people to start a fitness program. A new energy for eating healthy and working out accompanies the new resolutions. Unfortunately, by the end of January over 30% of all resolutions fail.  Here are some tips to help you keep your fitness resolutions and develop some healthy habits along the way.

First, it is important to remember resolutions often fail because the goals are too high. The amount of change you are trying to make in your life is simply too much. Creating a series of smaller milestones, can help bring your bigger project within reach. Whether you are focused on losing weight, increasing muscle strength or developing a sound cardiovascular training program, set a manageable pace that you can follow. Surround yourself with people who will motivate you to keep focused on your place.

Using these rules as a guide:

Be Specific:   When you decide to go join the gym, speak to a personal trainer about your goals from the exercise routine, be specific.  Don’t generalize what you want the results of your exercise efforts to be. State clear and definitive landmarks that can be achieved in a specific amount of time. (i.e. I want to increase my strength in all of my lifting exercises by 5lbs within 6 weeks).

Measureable goals:  Most goals that are set in a fitness setting can be measured quite easily.  Be sure to get your baseline and record your progress as you go.  It is inspiring to write down the improvements.   On the hard days, the record of your successes makes it easier to stick to your program.  Exercising on a regular basis is not always fun, but positive results will happen if you are consistent with your program.

Achievable goals:  Goals have to be set and the “bar” should be high enough to make you work for a positive outcome, but not so high that you fail to achieve it.  When you begin an exercise routine your first goal has to be to attend on a regular basis.  Don’t attempt to go to the gym every day, instead visit it 2-3 times per week.  You should work with a personal trainer initially to learn the proper techniques and form needed during the routine that will produce the best results and prevent injuries.

Relevance: Your exercise routine needs to be relevant to you.  You have to want to achieve certain goals and your personal trainer can help you formulate your plan but you are the ultimate decision maker.  You have to decide the most important aspect of the exercise routine that you are going to begin and then have your trainer develop a program to help you achieve your goals.

The New Year stimulates most people to look in the mirror and decide what has to change to make their lives better.  Deciding to begin a regular exercise routine is admirable and will make you feel a great deal better physically and mentally if you can perform the routine consistently and stick with it for a long time.

As you assess your past year and set goals for the next year, don’t forget that change takes time. Physical changes in the body take several weeks/months to occur and there is no “quick fix.” If you are not accustomed to performing an exercise routine, get a personal trainer or training partner to help motivate you to go to the gym consistently.  Working out consistently over time is essential. You will experience a life-changing experience when you achieve your goals and successfully complete your routine consistently for several months.