Tips to keeping my New Year’s Resolution:

1. Set goals that are realistic and obtainable:

   Instead of making a goal of “get healthy”, make a goal of “I will walk 30 minutes 3 times per week”.  Instead of making the goal “I want to lose weight”, set the goal of “I will eat vegetables 6 days per week”.

2. Break up your goal into smaller goals:

   Instead of setting the goal that you want to save $500 or buy a newer car, set a goal of saving $50 per month.

3. Make it visible:

   Write down your goals and post them somewhere you will see often (e.g. on top of your sock drawer or taped to the mirror) to remind yourself to stay on track.

   

4. Start slow:

   If my goal is to run a marathon, I can’t go out and run 20 miles tomorrow when I haven’t been running.  Depending on your current level of fitness, you might start by walking 1 mile per day, and then increasing it to a faster walk and/or adding more of a distance the following week.

5. Be reasonable:

   The reason why most diets don’t work is that people see them as temporary where they will eat according to the diet until they lose the weight and then get right back to what they were eating before. Most changes that are healthy should be a lifelong journey and not a fad, so starting at a reasonable pace is the key for long-term success.

6. Get support:

   If you want to run a marathon, join a running group. If you want to read more, join a book club.  This way you can motivate each other to stay focused on your resolutions.

7. Make an appointment with a therapist to help keep your NYE resolutions:

   A majority of people who come into therapy want to make changes in their lives (big or small). A therapist can help you create an individualized plan because everyone has different struggles and inner conflicts that they need to work through to get from Point A to Point B.  A therapist is trained in helping people accomplish their goals.

If you want help making changes in your life, please call us at Long Beach Therapy.  We offer in person therapy in Long Beach and also provide telehealth if you live outside of Long Beach.