Why Most Resolutions Fail by February (and how to turn it around)

Is your spark fizzling out? Here’s how to get up and get going again.

Image by kalhh from Pixabay

You hit the new year motivated to revamp your health.

You went back to the gym, ditched the crisps, filled the fridge with healthy snacks, signed on for Dry January. You could picture the new, ripped you and were pumped for results.

But a month in, the spark is fizzling out. Life and all its stress is winding up again, you’ve barely dropped a kilo and — well — your boss would drive anyone to drink.

You slump down in defeat. Have I failed again? Has another round of New Year’s resolutions turned to dust before February even beds in?

Research shows around 80% of us have flagged our resolutions before the curtain comes down on January. Only the mighty few — around 8% — hang tough right through the year.

So, with such a high failure rate, why do we bother setting lofty goals at the start of a new year? Isn’t the inevitable crash and burn just another way of making us feeling bad about ourselves?

For that reason, many now shun New Year’s resolutions, instead opting for a theme word to frame their year. Clean, balance, growth and calm are popular choices in 2025.