Many mistakes are made each January as people embark on new actions, fitness drives and big plans. Some of the main ones I see year after year are below.
Going Out Too Hard – January motivation is high so you try to do everything at once. Five training sessions a week, perfect food, no alcohol, early mornings and zero flexibility. This can work for a week or two, but it usually collapses because it relies on motivation and willpower rather than systems. The issue is not effort, it is sustainability. If what you are doing feels hard to repeat, it probably will not last. Progress comes from finding the lowest level of effort that still creates change and repeating it over and over.
Not Learning Skills – Most people dive into a new plan or regime which often feels like a punishment rather than develop a skill. While plans are great, what is more important is what has fundamentally changed going forwards. It is the difference between having an exercise plan vs finding a way to modify your workout when it is super busy and you have had a bad day. Likewise, counting calories tells you how much you have eaten it does not compare to learning a how to cook some nice tasting lower energy recipes that you can use for years.
Assuming Things Will Stay The Same – People often assume that however hard something feels now, it will always feel that way. That is rarely true. Your body adapts, hunger settles and cravings reduce. Your fitness will improve so exercise becomes easier and even enjoyable. Your environment also changes, the gym gets quieter, the weather improves, evenings get lighter and walking becomes easier. You do not need January to feel good, you just need January to get you started so future you finds things easier.
Measuring Progress Badly – A huge mistake people make is using the wrong tools to judge progress and/or the wrong timescale. The biggest cause of problems is of course the weighing scales, which we have discussed many times. If it is your only measure and you are basing your motivation on short term changes you will run into problems. This is because of the way it naturally fluctuates due to hydration, digestion and carb stores.
The other big issue is the expectation of the speed by which you can get results. While we would all love results in the fastest possible time they don’t come without consequence. The faster the fat loss, the greater the hunger, cravings or dips in energy. The harder you train, the more likely you will get injured. This both lead to setbacks and inevitable demotivation and slowing of your progress. The problem wasn’t the results speed however, it was your expectation of results.
What Does This Mean For You
January is not about proving anything or fixing everything at once. It is about setting things in motion and putting pieces in place that make the rest of the year easier. Go a little slower than your motivation tells you to perhaps, or learn how to do things properly rather than forcing them. If you build foundations and habits you can repeat, results take care of themselves.
To help you with this you can join my new daily video programme Couch to Cloud 9. It is designed to run in the background of your health & fitness efforts while motivating and encouraging you to make better choices. It is free to sign up currently.
Photo – Some pics from my runs this January, this is the most I have ever run since December as I look to bring my 5km time down this year to improve my Hyrox time:
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