New Year’s Resolution

For many of us, this time of year can be overwhelming and stressful with holiday planning and busy schedules. But with December coming to a close, there’s also a new beginning in sight. Ushering out an old year and welcoming in a new one can give us the opportunity to reflect back on 2017: what was good or bad about 2017? From a health perspective, is there anything you wish you would have done more or less of? As 2018 approaches, many people set New Year’s Resolutions for themselves—perhaps to eat healthier, exercise more, reduce stress, or increase productivity. New Year’s Resolutions can be a great way to make a meaningful change in your life to mark the start of a new year, but many of us know that the hardest part is continuing through with our goals. In fact, 50% of Americans set New Year’s Resolutions, but 88% of them fail.¹With that in mind, we’re here to help you succeed with your 2018 New Year’s Resolution.

First, the most important key to keeping up your resolution is to make it a habit.  It’s always hard to add something new or remove something bad from your life initially. Research shows that it takes an average of 66 days to establish a new habit.² But once we integrate something into our lives and form a habit, we will be so much more likely to continue it.  Here are five ways to successfully form a new habit with your New Year’s Resolution:

Pick just one resolution.
Although there may be multiple things in your life that you would like to change, try to start with just one. Having just one goal will make it easier to achieve, and you may find that when your health improves in one area of your life, it will be easier to change other areas as well.

Make your resolution specific.
Although goals of “becoming healthier” sound great, they are hard to put into practice in daily life. Make your goal something very specific and it will be easier to follow. Instead of “eating healthier,” try “replacing dessert with fresh fruit.” Or instead of “exercising more”, try “walking for 10 minutes every day.” Making a very specific goal will keep you on track.

Start small.
You don’t have to tackle your entire resolution in 1 month; in fact, this will likely overwhelm you and lead to failure.  Remember, it takes 66 days to form a new habit. Start with something small that you can do every day and build up from there. For example, instead of trying to quit smoking entirely in one month, for the first month try just cutting out just 1 cigarette a day and build from there.

Make a plan.
Before the first of the year, sit down and make a plan of exactly how you will achieve your goal. Write it down and revisit it throughout the year as a reminder. Decide on a way to track your progress. Maybe this includes keeping a record on a calendar or having a friend check in periodically to see how your goal is progressing. Celebrate your successes no matter how small or big they are. Having a set plan and a way to keep yourself accountable will help ensure success.

You don’t have to be perfect.
Remember that even if you lose track of your goal for a day, a week or a month, you haven’t failed unless you give up. It’s ok if you stumble along the way—creating a new habit is hard! But remember that you can always start again the next day with a fresh slate.  

What is your New Year’s Resolution this year? Live Your Life would love to help you achieve your goals of a healthier lifestyle in 2018. Whether we help you create a plan for success or be your coach along the way, contact us today to schedule a consultation.

Cheers to a New Year ahead!

Dr. Anna Hagens
Doctor of Physical Therapy
Certified Lymphedema Therapist
Live Your Life^TM
Bringing Physical Therapy & Wellness to You!

Dr. Anna Hagens is passionate about helping her clients reach their personal goals and improve their quality of life. Anna earned her Bachelor’s of Arts degree from St. Olaf College in 2011 and then went on to receive her Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2014. Anna has experience working with a wide variety of diagnoses within home care settings, skilled nursing facilities and assisted living facilities.

Anna loves motivating clients to regain independence and believes the home environment is an ideal setting for personalized treatment. Her areas of expertise include geriatrics, fall prevention, dementia management, neurological rehabilitation and lymphedema therapy. She has furthered interest in these areas by becoming a Certified Lymphedema Therapist and certified in the Otago Falls Prevention Program. Anna has also become certified in the LSVT Big Program to provide specialized treatment to clients with Parkinson’s Disease.

Anna is an active member of the American Physical Therapy Association where she stays up to date on recent research through her participation in the Home Health and Geriatrics Sections. In her free time, Anna can be found spending time with her fiancé and friends, exploring the outdoors while hiking, skiing, and gardening or cooking and baking. She’s also a music lover and enjoys playing the harp and piano.

References
¹Wiesman, Richard. Richard Wiseman. https://richardwiseman.wordpress.com/. Accessed 12 December 2017.

²Lally, Phillipa. “How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world.” European Journal of Social Psychology, July 16th, 2009. Accessed 12 December 2017.