Keeping Fit: Trouble with New Year’s resolutions? Here’s how to double your success

Published 4:00 pm Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Lots of people make New Year’s resolutions. Some are related to fitness and health, while others may be financial or personal. But most don’t make it past Valentine’s Day. According to U.S News and World Report, 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail by February.

But what if we were to tell you that new research reveals amazingly effective techniques that can more than double your chances of success if you implement them? Keep reading and we’ll share some of them.

The power of “implementation intentions”

A huge reason people fail at creating new habits is because they lack a plan to get them there. A study in the British Journal of Health Psychology sought to figure out what would keep someone coming back to the gym. They divided 248 people into three groups.

The first group was the control group and was asked to simply track how often they exercise. The second group was considered the “motivation” group because they were asked to not only track their exercise but to watch a motivational video explaining all the heart health and bodily benefits that they would get from it. The third group was asked to do the exact same as the second group, but were also asked to plan exactly when and where they were going to do 20 minutes of vigorous exercise. Specifically, they were asked to fill out this statement: “During the next week, I will partake in at least 20 minutes of vigorous exercise on (day) at (time) in (place).” This statement is what the researchers called an “implementation intention.” That is, your plan for how you intend to follow through with your habit.

The impact was startling. Their study found that fully 91% of those who filled out the implementation intentions actually followed through with their plan versus only 35% or 38% of those in the motivational or control groups, respectively. That is more than double the success rate of following through with their exercise goals.

Perhaps even more interestingly, the control group actually did better than the motivation group, revealing that motivational teachings had no significant added benefits for increasing exercise behavior. What mattered was not motivation, but the plan you have set for when and where you would actually do the exercise. Planning is the secret ingredient, not willpower.

The power of one

The hardest thing about change is people usually want to make large changes in their life at one time. This strategy typically is destined for failure. In fact, Amy Dalton and Stephen Spiller, when writing in the Journal of Consumer Research, revealed from their research that implementation intentions only work when you focus on one goal at a time. This has also been borne out in successful coaching groups like Precision Nutrition and individuals like Leo Babauta, who wrote the book on the subject: “The Power of Less.”

The head of Precision Nutrition, John Berardi has stated that clients attempting to change just one habit typically succeed with an over 80% success rate. But attempting two habits drops the success rate under 35% and three or more to 5% or less.

The bottom line as Babauta says, “The only way you’ll form long-lasting habits is by applying the ‘Power of Less’: Focus on one habit at a time, one month at a time, so that you’ll be able to focus all your energy on creating that one habit.” This regular effort and practice of the new habit makes it become automatic, the new normal, and that is what helps you succeed.

The power of accountability

Doing something hard is always easier when you have someone else besides yourself going through it with you. You can lean on each other for motivation, accountability, and it can also be fun to compete with one another.

Having an accountability partner has been shown to increase your chances of success to 95%, according to a study completed by the American Society of Training and Development. It’s true that this is a form of external motivation, and long-term change is best predicted by gaining the skills of internal motivation and habit change like mentioned above. However, when you really want to be successful, a coach or accountability partner can be indispensable.

In business this is referred to as Pearson’s Law: “When performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported back, performance improves exponentially.” To supercharge your success, find yourself an accountability partner and take action together.

The bottom line

Here at the Bradley Wellness Center we take the concept of mentorship and life coaching very seriously. We understand that habits are hard to break, and the best way to change is one habit at a time. Though this seems slower than trying to make a big change all at once, in the long run it actually produces the fastest results that can be sustainably achieved. If your desire is to lose weight and keep it off, or gain muscle and improve your health, we have a “one small habit at a time” coaching program to help you. Just give us a call at (706) 278-WELL and we’ll help you turn your New Year’s health resolutions into a success.

Thomas Morrison and Tucker Gregg are personal trainers at the Bradley Wellness Center.