Don’t be a victim of Quitters day

The New Year is here, and with it come’s a slew of New Year’s resolutions. According to Statista.com the top New Year’s resolutions for 2025 include, saving more money, exercising more and, of course, losing weight. Each year millions of people set New Year’s Day as the day where they are going to make significant improvements in their lives. And they all start off with purpose and drive to be successful.

But, do these New Year’s resolutions actually last (statistically). Well, certainly some do! Some people set a New Year’s resolution and follow through on executing the lifestyle changes needed to make it successful long term. As expected, however, most do not. Most people quit on their New Year’s resolution very soon after the initial hype of the New Year wears off. Several years ago, Strava, a fitness tracking site, published data showing that approximately 80% of those who made New Year’s resolutions had quit by the second week of January. They went on to predict that the second Friday of the year was the day that many of these resolutions went bust. This became known as “Quitters Day”. And, this is especially true for those who make “healthy living” resolutions like weight loss.

So, the question is, how does one not become one of these statistics? In our Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky weight loss offices we see a flood of new clients wanting to lose weight at the beginning of each year. How do we counsel them so they are successful for longer than a few weeks. It really comes down to only a few things.

1. You must be totally and completely ready to change. What I mean by this is you must be “fed up” with your current situation to the point where you will do almost anything to change it. In other words – the stress and discomfort of your current situation must outweigh the stress and discomfort of the changes that will be needed to fulfill the resolution. If this isn’t the case the resolution, no matter what it is, will inevitably fail.
2. You must not overwhelm yourself. Keep the goals of a New Year’s resolution small at first. Let yourself see small victories. This can be very motivating. Along the same line, try not to take on more than one or two resolutions. Trying to juggle the changes needed to make several significant resolutions stick can be destructive to the long-term success of any particular resolution.
3. You must have a clear and concise plan that you are truly onboard with. Many New Year’s resolutions are simply “wishes”. They are not actually plans to be successful, but simply desires to be different. Without a plan with specific particulars, a plan that you can truly get behind, and believe in, there is no way to make the resolution last. People often fail in this planning process, and as they say, “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail”.

So take on the New Year with a renewed sense of optimism that change is withing reach if you truly want it. You will likely go through tough times and lulls in motivation. Those who stick it out during these challenging times will ultimately go on to be successful long-term.