Are you REALLY ready to stick to your RESOLUTIONS?

Its the same every year. We over indulge throughout the Christmas holidays and then hit the New Year in a state of panic swearing we will NEVER again let another chocolate pass by our lips again. We trot off to the gym with resolutions firmly fixed in mind and vow we will stick to it this time. Then suddenly February arrives and somehow these promises have fallen to the wayside and we guiltily put our resolutions to the back burner once again.

So what is the trick to sticking to these bold fitness and health goals we make? How do we avoid failure? Is there a secret?

The truth is, there is no quick fix. I am a huge fan of setting goals, but I think the problem we run into when January rolls round is we make these goals both unrealistic and unreachable. Then when we fall of the bandwagon and experience those awful feelings of failure, and so the cycle goes.

Before you even think about setting in concrete your fitness resolutions, ask yourself "Do I really want to achieve this? am I really ready to do what it takes? How much am I willing to change?" Here are a few pointers that will help you set your goals.

1. Set a REALISTIC time line. Nothing happens overnight, instead of trying to achieve everything in one month set long mid and short term goals for the whole year.

2. Don't try and change your whole lifestyle in one go. Concentrate on one or two changes at a time, for example; if you want to quit smoking, stop drinking, start exercising and clean up your diet these are all huge changes to make and if you try to change all of them in one go it will more than likely not work out. Focus on conquering one at a time.

3. Write out your goals and put them on the fridge. This helps to keep your resolutions front of mind, it also helps if you tell friends or colleagues as they will remind you of promises you have made!

4. Dont beat yourself up if you slip up one or two times. All too often slip ups are used as an excuse to give up entirely, this is not acceptable!

5. Set goals together with your partner or a friend, a bit of moral support goes a long way! plus exercising alone is not nearly as much fun as with a workout buddy.

6. Have a plan. If you don't know where you are at the start or where your going you will end up chasing your own tail! Take measurements, jump on those scary scales, write a food diary, plan your workouts at the beginning of each week - get organized!

7. Be honest with yourself.... just because nobody else saw you eating that packet of m&m's it DOES NOT mean that it didn't happen!

8. Take baby steps. Not only will you hurt yourself if you hit the pavement for a 10k run when you have not built up to it but it will put you off all together. Start with 2-3k, build walk run intervals and maybe in 3 months you will reach that 10k mark.

Good luck and remember lifestyle changes are not just for New Years, they are FOR LIFE!!