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2021 fitness goals. Pixabay

This is the time of year when resolutions are made by the hundreds of thousands. People around the world (apart from a wishlist for Santa, secret or otherwise) look at this time as a sort of restart button. As several polls have shown over the years, health is the most popular issue. Resolutions are useful for having a clear indication that people want their wellbeing to be changed. But according to Forbes, every year more than 50% of people make New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, quit smoking, work out, save money, get a promotion, get a raise, and more. And yet, virtually every study tells us that around 80% of New Year’s resolutions will get abandoned around this month. In fact, one study found that gym sales dropped precipitously from January to February.

So why do resolutions for New Year's fail? One big explanation is that, in the first place, people were never all that emotionally dedicated to their goals. Since January 1st has become the day for us to change, a lot of these resolutions are a product of peer pressure. In today's article, we're giving you some realistic tips that can help you make a fitness resolution that you can actually stick to this 2021.

Set clear and specific goals

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Clear goals. Pixabay

Choose an objective that is straightforward, one that you can accomplish and calculate easily, such as walking a mile every day for a month or being involved for 15 minutes every weekday. It's best if you add numerical values to your goals such as writing down or recording the number of miles you run per day. An abstract aim such as "I'm going to get more fit" does not provide you with steps to follow, making it even more difficult to get started and keep going.

Instead, using gradual improvement, craft the objectives you need to get to your fitness goals. Instead of having one huge target, concentrate along the way on many smaller ones. To track your success, use various benchmarks and do not be afraid to change your end goals a little bit accordingly. Even one seemingly small goal that you fulfilled is better than twenty grand goals that you didn't

Planning is everything

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Plan with purpose. Pixabay

Planning, when it comes to changing the status quo, is the name of the game.

What kind of benchmarks for your objectives do you have? How do you intend on accomplishing them exactly? What kinds of stuff do you need to take out of your everyday life and what kinds of behaviors do you need to begin to incorporate? When setting up your health resolutions for next year, each of these questions should be on your mind.

The time factor is one significant element that ultimately ends up thwarting the progress of many people. How are your new workouts and good practices going to cut into current operations? When unforeseen events come up, what sort of contingency plan do you have? How are you going to proceed with your workouts when you're away from home and the same equipment isn't available.

Proper nutrition is the other half of the equation

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Proper nutrition and supplementation. Unsplash

Many people would like to think that it would be enough for them to work out a few times a week and that's it. But like everything in life, fitness isn't only made of one thing. One of the hardest things that you need to change in order for you to achieve your fitness goals is your nutrition. It takes a crazy amount of discipline for one to maintain. You don't necessarily have to start calorie counting or cut everything you love eating from your life. We're just saying that you don't scarf down half a pizza every week.

If you want to further bolster your health and promote better recovery from your workouts to maximize your efforts, you can take supplements. Popular and effective supplements include whey protein to promote muscle recovery (another good alternative would be casein protein). Protein bars are a great way to get a protein boost throughout your day. Collagen is also a great supplement to have because it promotes healthy skin, bones and joints.

Keep neat records of your progress

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Keep neat records. Unsplash

Like any other significant undertaking, reaching a significant target requires ongoing effort. And one of the best ways to ensure that your New Year goals are on the right track is to, well, track your progress with steadfast discipline.

Keeping a comprehensive log will give you the data to spot patterns, change tactics, and bask in your remarkable success along the way, whether you are tracking calories in breakfasts, lunches, and dinners or measuring your weight and reps in the gym. And doing so has never been easier with the various fitness trackers on the market today (some of which are better than others so be sure to research beforehand). Also, taking a look back at how far you've come can give you that added morale boost for those extra difficult days.

Don't forget to reward yourself

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Reward yourself. Pixabay

And lastly, when you successfully reach a goal, make sure to take the time to reward yourself. Motivation is the secret to sticking with any program, be it an exercise routine, diet, or even a change of attitude. And your motivation is bound to suffer without supplementing your workout targets with little pick-me-ups every now and then.

This is where goals and metrics crafted with purpose come into play. Instead of concentrating on the one overall target that takes a significant amount of time to accomplish, you can break it down into smaller components that can be completed much quicker.