2023 is now nine days old and many people are in that “new year, new me” mentality when it comes to their New Year’s resolutions.  

A common resolution is for people to focus on their health, wellness, and fitness and try to shed that unwanted weight and get into shape.  

According to a study done by Time2Play, improving fitness and well-being is the most sought out resolution, with 29.5 per cent of Canadians making that their top priority in 2023.  

Alliance Health and Fitness have some ways that Moose Jaw residents can stick to their fitness goals this year.  

Kyra Klassen is the fitness director for Alliance Health and Fitness and says that the biggest way to stay on track is to stay consistent and create achievable and sustainable goals. 

“If your goal is to lose 50 pounds, don’t make that your first goal, make your first goal 10 pounds and as you achieve and progress, change those up so that you’re continually growing,” says Klassen. “Those little milestones are going to help you feel more achievement, which will give you that extra grit to keep going.” 

Klassen adds another way for people to keep to their fitness goals this year is to work out in pairs, to keep one another accountable.  

“You can do the classes together and working out with friends is always more fun,” adds Klassen. 

Finding a fitness activity that suits you is another tip that Klassen provided that will help with achieving those fitness goals.  

“Whether it’s a dance fitness class, a bar class, yoga, or swimming, find your jam and go with it.” 

When it comes to following through on those resolutions, 68.6 per cent don’t succeed in keeping their New Year’s commitments. 

Klassen says that in her experience one of the reasons why she has seen people give up on their goals is their own mindset.  

“When people miss a workout or have a bad meal a lot of the time people they throw in the towel. They’re like well I missed the workout so why keep going? That’s why it’s really important to set those small achievable goals and if you have a bad day that’s okay.” 

To prevent giving up on those goals, Klassen suggests switching things up from time to time to prevent getting into a rut.  

“If you’ve been doing the same exercise for a long time, it can become very repetitive and your muscles aren’t working and performing the same because of that muscle memory so finding something new is a good thing.” 

Klassen concluded by saying that having a community of like-minded people around you that have the same goals is a good way to stay on track as we begin 2023.  

Some of the other most common resolutions are financial goals, no resolutions at all, career growth, improving relationships, travel, and learning a new skill.