Quitters Day

While driving home last night, I heard on a podcast that research conducted by Strava has shown that most people give up on their New Year’s Resolution by the second Friday after New Year’s. This is an excellent time to reevaluate resolutions and help you with your goals. Book a Free Intro to learn how Stronger Faster can help you achieve them.

Tips and Tricks

Here are some tips and tricks I have seen that help achieve success with health and fitness-related New Year’s Resolutions.

1. Set a measurable goal, not generic “get healthy” or “get stronger.”
   • Set realistic weight loss/gain targets. e.g., 10 lbs
   • Changes in waist circumference, lose 1 inch off my waist, gain ¼ inch to my bicep
   • Other measurable metrics for health. Resting HR, HRV, VO2Max, or lipid panels (work with a licensed professional)
   • Set a strength gain target, add 10 lbs on a lift (It doesn’t have to be a one rep max), drop 30 sec on run/workout, Deadlift 3 plates, or do an unassisted pull-up. Last year, I targeted getting a muscle up.
2. Set up processes to achieve that goal with specific daily/weekly actions.
   • Go to Stronger Faster 4x per week or every Monday and Friday.
   • Eat one serving of protein and one serving of vegetables with each meal, only eat at meals, have 25g of protein per meal, or target 1g of protein per lb of body weight per day.
   • Have a walking/movement target each day/week. For example, walk the dog 2x per day, or take a family walk 3x per week. Walk to the store 2x per week. Take a walk break 1x per day at work.
3. Focus on the changes or process, not the goal – changing the habits that lead to the goal is more important than the goal.
4. Don’t focus on perfection – small changes add up. For example, being consistent with protein targets, going to the gym, and moving daily will add more in the long run than being perfect in the short term.
5. Focus on things you can do versus ‘avoidance’ goals,
   • E.g., instead of “don’t eat carbs,” try “eat a vegetable at every meal,” or instead of “eat out less,” try “cook at home 3x times per week.”
6. Be Flexible with your goals – consistency is key. Targeting perfection leads to a feeling of failure and eventually quitting when you inevitably mess up.
   • Aim to go to the gym 4x per week targeting a minimum 2x per week
   • Aim to get a daily walk in
   • Aim for a serving of protein per meal
7. Remember, the goal is to change habits and lifestyle; otherwise, you may revert to where you were before you started. So make small changes that are realistic and enjoyable. For example, if you love carbs, it doesn’t matter if you lose 50 lbs by cutting carbs because you will be miserable with cravings and eventually give in to eating carbs again.

Book a Free Intro

Event Reminder: Stronger Faster Happy Hour presented by Tariq: Kirby Ice House; Friday, Feb 10, 2023, 630 pm