Melissa Paris Fitness

Every year, on December 31st, as you gaze around whatever holiday party you’ve dragged your tired, over fed, lethargic self to, you’ll watch people around you shoveling down appetizers and cheesy dips like the ball dropping at midnight is a sign of the impending apocalypse. One last hurrah before the over stimulated New Year’s Resolution’s begin, only to fizzle out by Valentine’s Day, culminating in a bowl of chocolate covered popcorn, a hefty pour of red wine, and a filet fit for Hulk Hogan.

We’re here to tell you why making New Year’s resolutions can actually be more discouraging than uplifting. If you can maintain a complete overhaul in diet and exercise after a particularly indulgent holiday season, more power to you. However, this is simply not the case for the average person. The mistake many people make in the wake of the New Year is resolving to do, too much, too fast. If you haven’t been to a gym in nine months, it stands to reason that you will not love getting up at 5am every day before work, or trudging through snow like a Viking to make it to your rigorously scheduled workout. Making daily resolutions, can be a much more effective way to ease yourself into a lifestyle change. Plan on elevating your heart rate three times a week, aim to cut back on chocolate or wine, and maybe go your separate way from the cheesy goodness that is the New York pizza you dive into every Friday night. Sustainability, is KEY.

Ambition is of course, admirable, and again, we urge you to aim high! But, often, when you set yourself up for perfection, the regret of missing a workout or straying from a diet can actually backfire and lead down a slippery slope of binge eating and couch surfing. The, “well I already ruined today”, mentality, kills far more fitness dreams than the cookie that started it ever will. Each week, track your progression in the gym, and subtract one more guilty pleasure from your diet. Make a list of your daily victories, in fact, make daily resolutions. Write them down the night before, and feel free to check them off as you go about your day. If those happen to be things like, “just stay alive today, and don’t reach for the Cheetos in the work vending machine,” we won’t judge you, but do as much as you think you can handle.

Progress, not perfection, is key here. It didn’t take you one month to reach the physical state you may be in, and it won’t take a month to turn you into Gisele. When it comes to fitness, slow and steady wins the race. Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t built in a day. Get your family on board with your health goals, and don’t be afraid to ask the people around you to support your goals by refraining from drowning you in cheese dip at family gatherings. Weight loss, and health gain are infinitely easier when you have a solid support system.

Most importantly, remember that January 1st is just another day. You don’t have to wait for it, or an event, to change your lifestyle and better yourself. If you’ve already fallen off the wagon, stop thinking about it as a resolution for the New Year and simply resolve to change your life, one day at a time.