Keeping New Year’s resolutions takes, well, resolve

Q: I’ve decided not to make any New Years resolutions since in the past I never seem to follow through with them. Why is it so hard to change bad habits?

A: Statistics reveal that only 8 percent of people achieve their New Years resolutions, so your situation is not uncommon. This can happen for a number of reasons, but a few of the most common culprits are:

All-or-nothing mindset.

Although this may work for some, most people do well with gradual changes, which lessens stress yet still takes you step by step toward your goal. Getting into a habit, be it good or bad, typically takes about three weeks. This time can be used to re-train ourselves to expect healthier food and drink, to be more physically active, repeating the behavior day by day until it becomes an automatic response.

People willing to make this effort are rewarded with a greater sense of accomplishment and confidence, and they are motivated to continue. As an example, those who are in the habit of exercising are all too familiar with how lousy they feel when they miss a workout. They have trained themselves to expect movement, and experience a negative response if the pattern changes, usually feeling irritable and sluggish. Those who aren’t active, on the other hand, typically look at exercise as a chore, hardly a recipe for making a change. We create our own path by the choices we make.

Create a substitute habit.

Trying to eliminate all of your favorite treats automatically requires you to focus on the very thing you are trying to avoid. Rather than an avoidance mentality, take charge by having replacement “new-habit” food choices available, ones that you still enjoy, but know are lowercalorie, healthier options. There are hundreds of healthful swaps you can make, without having to sacrifice taste.

Year to year, losing weight is a top resolution. Even with the best intentions, we can easily talk ourselves into cravings because we recall how good they tasted or how good we felt when eating them. Some experts believe cravings are brought on by vitamin/mineral imbalances, or by low levels of certain “feel-good” chemicals like serotonin. All the more reason to choose foods that contribute to great mood and energy. Keep in mind, too, that exercise and diet go hand in hand — one without the other typically provides less than optimal results. It’s not likely that after a great workout for instance, you will pig out on junk food. More likely, you’ll eat healthier because you dont want to undo the calorie burning obtained from your workout.

Lastly, success calls for a solid plan of action. The plan should include the steps you intend to make to reach your goals, and these should be written down. Expectations of yourself should be realistic, taking into account your current schedule, other priorities, etc., so that you have a clearer picture of how you will make it work.