Now that we are over 6 weeks into the new year, there is a chance, like 53% of the rest of the population, this includes either losing some weight or exercising more, but how many people are actually still sticking to those goals?

Statistics show that around 32% of people that start a new year's resolution with the aim of being healthier stop within 2 weeks. So if you are one of those individuals that are still going - well done! But, if you are one of the 32% that have stopped and are finding it increasingly difficult to keep going, what can you do?

1. Write down small weekly goals. Working towards weekly goals is easier than monthly ones.

2. Put your goals on your fridge door or somewhere that's easily seen throughout the day

3. Be realistic

4. Keep focused

5. Be positive

A good example of how applying all of the above is with one of my clients Kevin. He came to me in January 2022 wanting to lose some weight and just to feel better about himself. The challenge was that Kevin had a couple injuries that we had to work on first. So rather than going into a full blown change we worked on making his injuries manageable whilst introducing exercise and small goals to work towards. After a longer than expected 5 months, Kevin got to the stage when he felt comfortable with his injuries and we focused more on increasing his exercise, both frequency and intensity plus tracked habits.

Fast forward to January 2023 and Kevin was a different man. Now not only was he virtually injury free, he reduced his body fat percentage by 25%, of which included a 30% reduction in the nasty visceral fat that surrounds his internal organs. He lost 8.5kg and dropped down two belt holes but more importantly maintained his muscle mass, changed his body shape and feels amazing!

Now some may say, that's not that impressive in 7 months but the goal was not to go all in on a fast track fad diet or miracle programme, but to make changes in a ‘little and often’ approach whilst being educated and learning about his own body, oh and whilst spending on average 10 days a month working overseas living in hotels it had to be realistic and sustainable.

Kevin is a great example on how if you apply the 5 simple rules above you can achieve your goals. Don't fall into the trap of wanting it yesterday.

To add to that, in January this year, I set Kevin the goal of running 10K under the hour (he was hovering around the 1hr 3 min mark) and he beat that early February. Check out Kevins before and after picture - for reference the dumbbell Kevin is holding is the total amount he has lost.

So, if you feel like times are getting tough or you feel like you're about to fall off the proverbial wagon: take a minute, reset goals and refocus. The journey isn't easy, but it's the ones who overcome the tough times that reach the line.