New Year’s Resolutions: Goal or Wish?

As published in the Bothell/Kenmore Reporter, the Greater Bothell Chamber of Commerce newsletter, the Capitol Hill Times, the North Seattle Herald-Outlook, and the South Seattle Beacon.

"A goal without a plan is just a wish."
-Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I want to lose weight. I want to pay off my credit card debt. I want to quit smoking. I want to exercise more. Sound familiar? Chances are that these are at least a few of the New Year’s resolutions you, or your friends, have chosen to undertake this year. Maybe your resolution was produced on a whim or was a simple response to a common question during a New Year’s party. Or maybe it was a declaration of frustration from dealing with a daily reminder of your need to get out of debt or lose weight. Whatever the inspiration for your resolution, it is now yours to keep. Well, today you have less than a 30% chance of keeping that resolution past February. However, there are some simple ways to help you keep your resolution this year, and toast to your success next year.

Set an achievable, well-defined goal. Most resolutions are too ambiguous: lose weight, pay off debt, exercise more. Others can be unrealistic. In order to be successful, the goal has to be attainable and well-defined. Otherwise, there is no small measure of success and failure is likely. Here are some alternatives:

• Instead of “lose weight” resolve to decrease caloric intake by 1) cutting out dessert, 2) switching from regular soda to diet soda or water, or 3) not eating fast food for lunch. Choose one to start your year, and try to make all three permanent changes by the end of the year.
• Instead of “pay off debt” resolve to decrease your credit card debt by 1) switching to a bank debit card and only spending money that you have in your account, 2) taking a sandwich and yogurt for lunch and spending the extra $5 per day toward your debt, or 3) making no major purchases for a car or extravagant vacation until your debt is paid off.
• Instead of “exercise more” resolve to improve your health by 1) waking up a half-hour earlier to go for a walk or run before work, 2) not using elevators for less than five floors, or 3) doing twenty push-ups and fifty sit-ups per day. Again, start with one resolution and build from there.

Find the time. The most common excuse that I have used and heard in regards to failing to keep a resolution is that there is just not enough time to get it done. In order to be successful with your resolution, you need to find the time. Evaluate how much time you spend on the computer, in front of the TV, or working outside of the office and dedicate some of that time to your health. Here are some ways to find the time in your day:

• Set your alarm clock so that you wake up 30 minutes earlier. If you get exercise done first thing in the morning, you won’t have to find the time when you are exhausted at the end of the day.
• Stay away from the television. You can browse through the news online quicker than watching it. Instead of watching Monday Night Football, listen to it on the radio for the first half as you go for a stroll.
• Spend less time online. Most Americans spend an average of three hours per day online or in chat rooms. Instead of surfing the web at lunch, get out for a walk. Instead of hanging out in a chat room, get a running or walking group together to get out on the weekends.

Take responsibility. It is easy to find reasons that you will not be able to achieve your goals. It is much harder to figure out ways to deal with those barriers. Sit down and come up with a list of potential roadblocks to your goal. Evaluate these barriers to your resolution, and try to come up with three things you can do to overcome each of these potential roadblocks to your goal.

Get a checkup. Your physician can be very helpful in helping you achieving your New Year’s resolution. They can make sure your body can handle the rigors that you plan to put it through over the next year. They can help you set reasonable weight loss goals and work with you to find the best route for you to accomplish that weight loss.

You can learn more by going to our Health Links page, where our physicians provide links to trusted health information for our patients: Whatever you choose to start or stop this year, I hope that this information will help get you started on your way to achieving your resolutions. Good luck!

Dr. Brett Daniel is the Chief of Primary Care at Pacific Medical Centers and the Medical Director of PacMed’s Canyon Park clinic in Bothell. He is a board-certified Family Medicine physician who received his medical degree from the University of Washington and did his training at Valley Medical Center in Renton. He has been in practice at PacMed since 2005. Click here for more information about Dr. Daniel.

January 2012

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