I’d like to say that my New Years resolution is to get fit or eat more healthily, but it’s not. If I’m going to be completely honest with myself, it’s actually completely about vanity. I want to be happier about the way I look and so my resolution is actually to look more fit and toned.

I think it’s really important to be completely honest with yourself about what you are actually trying to achieve. If I told myself my goal was to get fitter, I could achieve that, but still not be satisfied if I did not look better, and therefore I’d feel like I’d been unsuccessful. It’s crucial to spend some real time considering what your true goal is and make that your New Years Resolution.

Believe me, it has taken me ages to work out how to drill down to what my real resolutions are, I’ve been working on them for the past 5 or 6 years. Now I understand how to do this more effectively, I’ve been able to focus on how to achieve them.

Some of the techniques I follow are detailed below:

1) Clarify your goal

Be completely honest with yourself and work out what you actually want to achieve. What does the end state look like? Don’t say what you think you should do or what others will expect you to be accomplishing, this is totally personal to you, say what you really want. If you’re not honest at this stage it will make success extremely difficult.

2) Create a plan

Once you know what your true goal is, you need to spend some time planning how you are going to achieve it. Too many people set their New Years Resolutions, with absolutely no clue about how they are going to go about reaching them. I came up with 4 different elements that would help me accomplish my goal. I measure and track each one to ensure I am on track to achieving the overall goal.

The elements to my plan are:

– Healthy eating

I have a daily goal to eat with intention. This means making a conscious choice about what I eat at every meal. This includes making healthy home cooked meals 3 times a week and by cutting out white refined carbs.

– Forming and exercise routine

I have committed to undertaking a minimum of 10 minutes of exercise 6 days a week. Often I spent way more than 10 minutes exercising, but that’s my minimum target.

– Perfecting a 5k run under 30 minutes

My aim is to get my 5k run under 30 minutes in the next 3 months. It’s part of the exercise routine goal, but this is slightly more specific element to it. It’s great when your goals align with each other, it makes it way easier to achieve.

– Reducing my alcohol intake

My target is to have 5 days a week with no alcohol.

All of these elements will contribute to my overall goal and help me ensure I am on track to achieve it.

Don’t fall into the trap of over- planning and spending ages on this step, but get going to accomplish the resolution as soon as you have made your plans.

3) Share with people

I’m definitely not shy about my New Years resolutions (or much at all if I’m honest!) I love to share what I am trying to achieve, with anyone who’ll listen. I find the more people I tell, the more committed I am to achieving it. Once I have declared to the world that I am doing something, my pride kicks in and it makes me more determined to do it and to do it well.

4) Use technology

I love apps! I’m constantly on my phone and always looking for things that will make my life easier, if this comes in app form, so much the better. I spent some time browsing the Internet and there are so many apps out there, that are designed in different ways, to support the achievement of my goal. I narrowed them down to my favourite and am currently using CoachMe, Runkeeper, and MyRecipeBook. You should definitely spend some time looking at what would best support you in your resolutions.

5) Turn it into a competition

If you are a competitive person (like me!), this can really help. You can compete with both yourself and other people. I have a competition with a friend about who can achieve the biggest transformation in terms of body shape. We have both taken before pictures and have a 3 month timeframe to see who has made the biggest change. Every time I think about staying in bed and missing an exercise class or eating a four cheese stuffed crust pizza, I think about whether that would put me behind in the competition and it gives me that extra motivation.

6) Keep it relevant

This is about how I keep the goal in the forefront of my mind. How do I keep as motivated about it in 6 months as I am today? There are numerous ways you can do this. The CoachMe app really helps me as it means I see my goals in black and white every day. Some people write a journal to track progress, others compare notes with friends, whatever works for you, but look for ways you can keep being reminded of them.

One of the ways I am going to track my progress is on Bestselfology. Keeping you guys informed will help keep me motivated and I will share what works and where I have struggled in this blog series.

I’d love to hear about your New Years Resolutions and how you are tracking your progress against them in the comments below.