DARPAN FITNESS
A
h yes, the good ol’ and generally dreadful “New Year’s Resolutions,” article which is possibly going to make you, the reader, feel like they aren’t doing enough therefore coercing you into stepping it up a notch this New Year. Fortunately, that is not the angle that we’d like to take for this year’s article addressing the topic of New Year’s resolutions, however what we’re aiming to achieve with this piece is to help reframe the way we view this entire phenomenon and how to reduce our rate of failure.
KEEP YOUR NEW YEAR
RESOLUTIONS BY JAS JOHAL & BEN GHUMAN
“How Not To Fail at Sticking to Your New Year’s Resolutions” The two of us have been involved in the fitness industry for over 10 years now and each January we watch countless individuals set grandiose health goals which by the end of the month are long forgotten. We’ve witnessed many members sign up for packages with several days of access per week only to “take a (prolonged) break,” before Valentine’s Day makes it around. This concept of biting off more than we can chew or being unable to stick to what we’ve publicly announced to everyone the night of our New Year’s Eve party is all too common. It’s almost a given that these so-called resolutions don’t last long therefore what’s the need to be upset when we eventually fall off the wagon since it’ll happen to most of us?
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JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2022 Reflecting The South-Asian Lifestyle
DARPAN
TM
Depending on which sources you consult, only about eight percent of New Year’s resolutions survive until the end of January. Can you believe that over 90% of us won’t make it past the four week mark? Many of the habits which we set to alter are so deeply ingrained into our daily living therefore making the switch at the hit of a button can be a very daunting task. Long lasting change isn’t something that occurs overnight but takes time to achieve, so understanding this is foundational in reassessing our approach in the New Year. Psychologists in the 70s and 80s developed what is known as “The Stages of Change Theory,” which displays change as occurring in the form of a step by step process.
Precontemplation:
not ready to admit that something might need to change
Contemplation:
considering that something might need to change but not ready to take action yet
Preparation:
getting ready to change by implementing supports and doing research
Action:
making the actual change
Maintenance:
keeping the change going for at least six months
