The top New Year’s Resolutions for 2020 are to eat healthier, get more exercise, save money, and focus on self-care. Only 8% of people making these resolutions are going to keep them. Every year another self-styled self-help guy will write a piece trying to sell you on a simple way to make sure you’re in the 8% this time. I guess this year, that's me.

I'll be your guide this iteration, but I hope to actually make a lasting impact. I’m writing in December, but don’t think of this as a New Year’s Resolution piece. This talk is a life vest for all resolutioners.

Resolutioners are passengers on a sinking ship who never bothered with learning how to swim. In the moment that water fills their lungs, their meager annual effort suddenly doesn’t seem like a sufficient preparation.

Here are 3 truths that will keep your head above water:

1. ACT NOW!

There is no better time for becoming the person you want to be than now. Waiting until Jan 1 or any other arbitrary date is setting yourself up for failure. Future you isn't going to magically acquire willpower and focus that present you can't muster.

Most people can identify what they want to change. This is important, but it’s easy to get overwhelmed or charge in with unsustainable energy and burn out quickly. Seeing the problem is key, don’t ignore it.

2. ESTABLISH REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS

There is no easy way. Changing yourself and developing new ways of living is hard. Doing it without a plan and accountability is basically impossible.

Accept there will times you will want to quit, and start prioritizing what is important to you. Accept that you can’t have it all today. In fact, trying for immediate change is a certain way to ensure any small change is temporary. Ignore the numbers and focus on your long term goals.

3. PLANNING IS KEY

This isn’t all about your willpower. No one eats an elephant in one sitting. Unrealistic expectations and goals will leave you in a worse place than you started.

Develop a series of accomplishable phases in the pursuit of your established priorities. It really helps to find a road map from someone else who has succeeded before you.

Give The People What They Want

I’m lucky to work in a place where fitness, eating right (and well), and my hobbies all line up. I recognize that most people don’t have that going on. My work keeps me in shape, but most aren’t that lucky. That’s why the top things people want to change about themselves have a lot to do with how the outside world sees them in their clothes and how potential partners see them out of them.

I don’t say all this to imply you’ve never tried or are lazy. I understand that the thing that drives resolutions is a history of failed attempts. So, why is your body comp or performance not changing?

It’s actually pretty simple, and it usually boils down to four things:

Diet- Most people are simply over consuming... it's that simple. Track your food, see what you’re eating. This doesn’t apply to you if you’re training consistently and not seeing changes; that’s likely because you’re starving yourself. Having a plan of what you NEED to take in and prepping meals for your hectic schedule instead of eating out is crucial.

Sporadic effort/Over training- Consistency is key here. You’re going to see and feel changes if you’re working out on a program four times a week. Most good programmers are going to factor in a day of active recovery and a rest day, so aiming for four to five days a week of “crushing it” is the target. If you don’t have a plan, you’re likely crushing yourself for five days and then limping around for four and scared to go back in and tackle it because of your delayed onset muscle soreness. Solid routine is the cornerstone of effect training.

Lack of proper recovery- This is crucial. Consistency is 100% dependent on the athlete staying healthy (here’s a feel good moment, we’re ALL athletes). Pre-workout warming up and post workout rehabilitative protocol should be programmed into your fitness regimen. Without it, you are more prone to injury and your follow on workouts will be hampered by unnecessary soreness and immobility.

Lack of accountability- Starting new things alone can be difficult. Surrounding yourself with a community of like minded people with similar goals is critical. It’s a lot harder to skip something when you are being watched.

A Totally Unbiased Solution

Here at SOFLETE, we have watched a lot of athletes try and fail. We have owned gyms and coached clients from all walks of life. While our specialty is the Special Operator, we don’t see our programs as being LESS valuable to every human on the planet. No matter your physical or mental state, our passion is helping you be stronger and more durable.

Our app is designed to be a one stop solution to your training needs. Our goal is to deliver performance like you’ve never seen. That performance should shape the way you view the pursuit of fitness in a supporting role for living your life, not as an antagonist. We put diet, work outs, recovery, and community in one location.

Our nutrition program is overseen by our in house RDN, and offers delicious options to keep fueling you at the right level for your desired goals.

Our training teams are geared to deliver the most adaptations possible with the lowest risk of injury. Not only is our methodology proven to see gains, it works in all the necessary protocols to stay healthy and focused. From our Basic team which focuses on strength building and movement development to prepare you for our more in depth training, to our Competitive Fitness team which will prep you to compete with the best in the World, our coaches are turning out the best programming in the business.

Even better, we offer a community of people that are actively engaged in improving themselves. This community is humorous and irreverent, but serious about their goals. Direct engagement with our coaches on facebook and through the app’s coaching feed answer any questions you might have, and our quarterly getaway adventures are a great way to put your new training to the test in the real world.

The Definition of Stupidity is Doing The Same Thing Over and Over, but Expecting a Different Result

Look, we aren't wizards. The most critical component to self-improvement is desire, and thing only person that can affect that is you. What we CAN offer is the absolute best fitness performance tools on the market.

Don’t sign up for another year of “this year will be different” using the same old tools. Come see the methodology that has kept countless Special Operators healthy and strong. Don't keep reading the scale and sighing, start tracking performance.

Or, maybe you are just better off showing up at Planet Fitness three times a week and treating yourself to the free pizza…