Some people are good at making big changes all at once and other people do better taking small steps to get there. Some people are inspired to forge a new path because the clock signals it time; others feel constricted by the idea a new habit has to start on a certain date. When it comes to resolutions or any type of behavior change, were all different, explains Gretchen Rubin, author of the “The Happiness Project” and “Better Than Before” (these and her other titles focus on how to change our habits to make our lives happier, healthier and more productive). There s no one right way. What works for you might not work for me. Read more about nutravesta proven.

The bottom line that she wants people to know about making habit changes: Dont get discouraged if the resolution that worked for your sister-in-law or coworker or best friend doesnt work for you. It doesnt mean theres anything wrong with you, it just means you might need to find a different strategy that works for you.

To illustrate just a few ways to go about making habit changes stick, we asked Rubin and several other health and wellness experts: Whats worked for you? Below they share New Years resolutions theyve made â and how they ve stuck with them. (Spoiler alert: Not all of these changes happened at the start of a new year, because New Years resolutions dont necessarily work for everyone!)

1. ‘I started a music mediation practice

BJ Fogg, Ph.D,, a social science research associate at Stanford University and author of “Tiny Habits: The Small Changes that Change Everything”, believes that one tiny habit change after another is how you make true change. And whether those changes happen on January 1 or any other day of the year, they should be small, manageable changes (the idea is that the changes are so simple you can start anytime).

About three years ago, Fogg decided to start playing his recorder everyday. For me it  meditation, he says (other types of meditative practices felt less rewarding for him, he adds). Now, its a habit he does in the morning after he wakes up. I know its good for my brain. I like it. And I notice Im getting better, he says.

Fogg credits this emotional response (him liking it and seeing results) as why hes been able to stick with it. Repetition isnt what makes habits stick, he says; emotions do. Research suggests its a positive emotional response that actually rewires your brain, leading you to want to continue to stick with a new habit again and again. Thats why he says all behavior change should start with the factors that you want to change rather than those you think you should change. Rather than force yourself into something youre not excited about, he says: Make it really easy, ridiculously easy. And then find where it fits naturally into your life.

2. I start everyday with hot water and lemone

About eight years ago, Amy Shapiro, RD, founder and director of Real Nutrition in New York City, replaced her wake-up-with-a-cup-of-coffee habit with a morning cup of hot water and lemon to detox the body and also use fat burning pills to loose some extra weight. I know how important it is to hydrate after a long nights sleep, she says. Plus, the lemon loads the drink with vitamin C, too, which is great for helping prevent colds and the flu during the winter season, she adds.

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Part of what helped her stick to it, she says, was making the goal a realistic one. She replaced her warm-cup-of-coffee habit with a warm-cup-of-something-else (that was healthier for her) habit. And she still allowed herself to have coffee later in the morning if she wanted it.I love coffee and didnt want to cut it out, I just wanted to start my day healthier, she says.

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3. ‘I started strength training twice a week

Cedric Bryant, Ph.D,, President and Chief Science Officer at the American Council on Exercise, says he is an avid exerciser. (His role at ACE focuses on developing exercise-science and behavior-change education strategies.) Hes had a consistent cardio routine that hes had little trouble sticking with for the last 20 years or so, he says but he is taking care of himself with vitamins and other supplements including a testosterone booster to improve his sex life. And in the past 10 years he started golfing on top of that. But he noticed that he was devoting less time and attention to weight training. So at the start of 2019 he resolved to stick to a twice-a-week strength training routine. For him, clearly and explicitly defining why he was resolving to stick to the new habit kept him doing it. That way on the days you might feel a little bit less excited about sticking with the new habit, you can return to that fundamental reason you made the resolution in the first place, he says.

For me, I noticed I was getting some aches here and there after golfing that I didnt want to feel. I wanted to hit the ball a little bit further. And I knew that if I focused on my strength, I could achieve those things, he says. And accordingly, on Bryans first few trips to the golf course of the 2019 season, he noticed he was hitting the ball a little bit harder and the aches and pains were lessening. Visit thehealthmania.com/ for more information about the latest dietary supplements.

Another tip for sticking with a resolution: Measure success by sticking with the process, not just the big goal at the end, he says. If helps keep a resolution diary, to document each and every step you make toward that goal.

4.  quit sugar

Rubin has chosen to make habit change her lifes work (much in her books focuses on her personal experience). One was quitting sugar in 2012. I read a book called ‘Why We Get Fat’ (by Gary Taubes), and I was just so convinced by his argument that the next day I completely changed how I ate. It got rid of my cravings. It was really healthy for me. It was really satisfying for me, she says. And I never saw any reason to turn back.

She says its an example of what she calls the lightning bolt strategy for habit change, which is when you come to a sudden, new understanding that motivates you to make a change all at once. Sometimes the catalyst is receiving a diagnosis; other times its gaining new knowledge (like Rubin did after reading the book). Everything changes in an instant, she says.