Before setting your New Year’s resolution or any goal, take the time to follow some simple steps to help improve your chance of success.

1) Choose a fitnes goal to work toward. Don’t begin to list everything you want to change at once. Help yourself to stay focused by choosing only one.

2) Make a commitment to your goal. Acknowledge setbacks and promise yourself that a setback will not allow you to abandon your goal. Each Monday you will begin again as if it is New Year’s Day.

3) Break it down to manageable slices. Instead of choosing a resolution to keep for an entire year, why not set up small goals each month. Maybe your resolution can be that you will choose a goal at the beginning of each month to work toward. That way, you don’t have to imagine continuing toward the goal for 365 days, only for 30 days. If that is still too long, try for a goal each week. Whatever it may be, your first goal should be to make your goals attainable, not to set yourself up for failure.

4) Make a plan of action. Determine what you should do and when you should do it. Be prepared to alter some of your behaviors in order to make the change happen.

5) Put your plan in writing and start food diary.

6) Send yourself reminder notices. Buy postcards and write one out to yourself for each month. Ask a friend to put one in the mail at the beginning of each month. You can also use free services on the internet to send yourself email reminders. Use your computer or PDA to set a reminder system.

7) Plan your rewards. There isn’t always much incentive on a daily basis to keep up with a change in behavior. Set up a reward system to help you going. Each day you follow your plan, put a dollar in a jar. Use the money to go out or buy something as a reward for following through.

8) Remember no plans are set in concrete. If you find yourself feeling like a failure because you can’t follow through, reevaluate your plan and your goals to make sure they are realistic.

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Coach Clement on WVEC Channel 13

" Most people never run far enough on their first wind, to find out if they've got a second.
Give your dreams all you've got, and you'll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you."  --- William James