New Year, New Me...Gradually

I tried to have a different mindset and approach going into 2026. Usually, I fall into the classic trap of setting enormous goals/New Year's resolutions that sound fantastic, but are extremely difficult to achieve (especially all at once, which is how I expect it to happen). I have realized that the main reason these goals do not come to fruition is because I put this insane pressure on myself to be absolutely perfect in regards to achieving the goals as soon as the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve/Day. After I inevitably fail to be perfect a couple weeks (or even days) into January, I then feel equally as frustrated that I fell into this trap again. I know that making extreme changes all at once is too difficult to stick to. I've been a health coach, and this is part of what I would try to teach people.

Let's take nutrition and exercise as an example. Trying to eat 100% perfectly and follow a time-consuming, challenging workout plan is most likely a huge switch from what you were doing before the New Year. When we exceed our calorie intake, or miss a workout, we feel that we have failed. We blame ourselves for not being strong enough to stick to our plan. I feel that the only way we could actually stick to our plan 100% is if we were in an environment like The Biggest Loser, where we would be completely isolated from real life, surrounded by the goals as well as people who would hold us accountable to make us stick to these goals. Our goals would be the ONLY thing we would need to focus on. We would have no everyday stressors from our normal life that usually take away time and energy. But even then, in this perfectly curated environment, people struggle to stick to the plan (which you see on the show). This is because it is so hard for us to make such huge changes all at once. Then if you take into account the fact that most of us are not able to be in the type of environment that the Biggest Loser has, think of how many extra stressors we deal with throughout each day - work, kids, pets, cooking, cleaning, bills, possibly taking care of a sick/old family member, and several other daily things that we are required to put our energy towards. When we "fail" to follow the strict plan that we set for ourselves, it can be extremely discouraging.

I also realized something else, at least for me - the planning stage is fun. Figuring out what the goal is and determining what the plan is to reach it can be exciting. If we follow the theme of nutrition and exercise - planning the meals, planning the workouts...this can be fun. But when it comes to actually doing them - this can be...not so fun. The execution of the exciting plan can actually be very boring. Eating Greek yogurt when you really want chips. Having only one portion of dinner when you could easily have 2-3. Not snacking before bed when you're so used to watching your shows while eating your favorite, comforting snacks. Getting up early to fit in the workout. It's little daily pieces of effort that get very monotonous and straight up challenging. Planning all of this can be exciting because it's fun to imagine the possibilities. It's easy to picture the success. It feels motivating to plan all of it right after you binge on a cheeseburger and think "I'll start tomorrow". But then when tomorrow comes...the motivation is waning.

This year, I've been using January as a month of trying to gradually make changes. To try to go easier on myself instead of putting a ton of pressure on myself to change my entire life with the flip of a switch. I'm documenting what I do all month, so that by the end of it I can reflect and adjust for February. I plan to repeat this process each month with all of my goals. This way, I won't get so overwhelmed and give up out of frustration or feeling like I failed. This way, I can let my brain, body, and spirit gradually build strong foundations that I can keep adding on to. Improvement and personal development should be a long-term journey, not like a hardcore diet that is pretty much impossible to stick to over time. And if you are able to stick to the extreme changes, you might see results, but the thing is - there is a good chance they don't last, because the plan is too difficult to stick to. This is a vicious cycle that I have gotten myself stuck in for years.

I'll report back with how this process is going. I would love to hear your take on it, and what you try this year! I'll be honest - there have been several moments where I find myself slipping back into that old mindset of needing to be perfect, but I'm sticking to my new plan of making gradual changes.