The new year is almost here which means you’re likely spending time reflecting on the past year and thinking about what resolutions or goals you want to set for yourself in the coming year. If you find yourself setting health and wellness goals year after year and abandoning them by mid-January, you’re not alone! Many people often set goals for themselves that they have a hard time sticking to. One of the biggest reasons people quickly fail to keep up with their resolutions is that they set goals but don’t make any plans on how to execute them. In this blog, we’ll walk through how to create a wellness plan that will help you stick to your resolutions and achieve your goals!

Assess Your Resolutions and Goals

The first step in creating a wellness plan to support your resolutions is to assess your goals for the new year. First and foremost, make sure your goals are reasonable and healthy. Nothing is more discouraging than setting a completely unrealistic goal for yourself and your lifestyle then feeling quickly defeated when you’re not making “enough” progress toward completing it.

For example, losing 100 pounds in a year is not a healthy or reasonable goal for the average person. Consider that not every goal can be fully completed in one year and this year’s goals may just be a starting point. Also, look at how many goals you have. If this year you want to hit the gym five days a week, pick up a new hobby, start volunteering, and go on weekly hikes, you will quickly become overwhelmed with how much time that takes up. Scale back your goals to something manageable for your lifestyle so that you aren’t burnt out or defeated after two weeks.

Set Smaller Goals Throughout The Year

Part of why so many people quickly give up their New Year’s goals is because they don’t get to experience the satisfaction of feeling like they’re making progress. If you set a very large or very vague goal for yourself, it can be harder to not only measure your progress but also to understand how to do actionable things to achieve your goals. 

For example, if your goal is to reduce your stress throughout the year in an attempt to be more present and healthier, breaking down this goal into smaller goals will help you see how much progress you’re actually making and understand things you can do to achieve your goal. In your attempt to reduce your stress maybe you want to find a new therapist, reduce your screen time, start meditating, and schedule regular massages. By understanding the things that you have to do to reach your goal, you can better track your progress and set yourself up for success.

Outline How You’ll Achieve Your Goals

One of the largest problems people face when trying to achieve their resolutions, and goals in general, is that they simply set a goal and then jump right into trying to achieve it. The energy and enthusiasm are great but without the support of a plan, it’s going to be hard to actually achieve these goals. Take a look at each goal or resolution you have and outline what is needed to achieve that goal. Be realistic about what kind of support you’ll need to achieve them. 

For example, if you have a goal of going to the gym more, consider that you need to decide how often you’ll go, what type of workouts you’ll do, and a routine or split of what you’ll do each week. Plus, going to the gym will affect your food needs and might require an adjustment to how much or what food you eat. Breaking down your goals may feel overwhelming at first but they can help you better plan and make your goals more actionable. You can also plan out what resources you might need in advance. If you have limited free time, going to the gym might take away time from cooking, so planning to use a meal or grocery service as you adjust might be the support you need. If you’re brand new to the gym and are feeling overwhelmed about what to actually do when you get there, you can plan to work with a personal trainer. 

Everyone is different so making a plan that includes resources and support specific to your needs will help give you the edge you need to turn your goals from dreams into reality!

Who Can Help Me Stick To My Resolutions?

If you want to enlist some help in sticking to your health and wellness plan in the new year, Advanced Kinetics is here for you! Whether you want to give personal training a try to incorporate more physical activity into your life or you want to schedule regular massage therapy services to reduce stress and focus on self-care, we have the team to help! If you’re ready to get started on your health and wellness journey, get in touch with us!