ATLANTA - If you started off 2020 strong, and are slipping fast, it may be time to reboot your New Year’s resolutions.
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Resolution reboot
If you're already struggling with your New Year's resolutions, FOX Medical Team's Beth Galvin can help you get back on track.
The first step, Emory internist Dr. Sharon Bergquist says, is to refocus, and think about your "why."
"You have to ask yourself, 'Why do I want to accomplish this goal,' Dr. Bergquist says. "If you ask yourself why, that's the reason, that's the aspiration. And that's going to help you."
If you're struggling to stay on track with your goals for 2020, it may be time for a resolution reboot. (FOX 5 aTL)
She says there are going to be days when you struggle to stick with your goals.
"But, if you have that bigger vision, you're much more likely to persist," she says.
If your goal is too broad, it may also be too hard to stay on track.
So, Bergquist says, try breaking your plan down into tiny, achievable steps.
"And at each step, celebrate your success," she says. "I think one thing that is really powerful, when you're trying to make a behavioral change, is getting yourself in an upward spiral towards your goal, where you're celebrating your successes, you're patting yourself on the back."
Bergquist has some other advice you might not expect: plan to fail.
If you're struggling to stay on track with your goals for 2020, it may be time for a resolution reboot.
"It's not a question of will you fail, it's when you fail," she says. " And, plan for what are you going to do when you fail? I think, when you expect it and you plan for it, you're more likely to get through it."
Part of the reason change is difficult, she says, is that most of our behavior is automatic, controlled by our subconscious mind.
So, willpower can only take us so far, and it's easy to fall back into old, familiar habits.
"Let yourself know this is not a personal failure; this is how we're wired to work," she says.
Planning ahead can help you stay on track.
If you're struggling to stay on track with your goals for 2020, it may be time for a resolution reboot.
The goal, Bergquist says, it to make doing the right thing, like getting up early to exercise, the easy thing.
"The night before, set out your gym clothes, set our your sneakers, set your alarm clock for a little bit earlier, so you have time," she says. "The more you set up the habit, and the more it becomes routine. Then, you can use the power of habit, so that it works in your favor, rather than against you."