STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
OK. So Leila, you made any New Year's resolutions on this New Year's Eve?
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
I mean, this is embarrassing to admit, but I just kind of give up on my resolutions before I start them.
INSKEEP: (Laughter).
FADEL: Like, I'm not going to get more fit. I'm not going to lose a bunch of weight. I'm just going to be me again next year.
INSKEEP: Be you.
FADEL: (Laughter).
INSKEEP: That's what I prefer. That's what I like. Anyway, if you're not making New Year's resolutions, some psychologists think you're doing it right. They say we should stop with the resolutions - resolve to stop. Dr. Terri Bly is one of the psychologists we're talking about. She's a therapist at LynLake Centers of (ph) WellBeing in Minneapolis-St. Paul, and she says the way that most people indulge during the holiday season naturally leads to self-reflection.
TERRI BLY: You know, during the holidays, we tend to think of these two weeks as where we just sort of let everything go. Our routines fall to the wayside. The way we eat tends to fall to the wayside. Some people drink more during the holidays. And we kind of have this mindset of, like, OK, January 1 - party's over.
INSKEEP: Which is when people tend to make a bunch of resolutions.
BLY: Most people talk about, I'm going to eat different. I'm going to lose weight. I'm going to stop drinking. I'm going to cut out sugar. I'm going to start going to the gym five days a week. We want something sexy that we can tell other people we're doing.
FADEL: But research says that about 80% of people abandon their New Year's resolutions by February. Ooh.
INSKEEP: You are not alone.
FADEL: I feel seen.
INSKEEP: (Laughter).
FADEL: Bly says, to make a lasting change, it's crucial to first figure out your why.
BLY: Why do I want to do something different? What is my value around this? What is my goal? - and then making sure it's something we want to do. So if somebody has a goal of going to the gym five days a week but they really hate exercise, then that's a mismatch. And maybe find other ways - what's the overarching thing? Well, I want to be healthier. And then we know there are lots of different ways to be healthier. And so what are some small steps that you can start taking that aren't painful - that aren't going to make you miserable?
FADEL: She warns against being overly ambitious. She says mastering small changes can help you reach your goals.
BLY: There's nothing magical about New Year's Day that makes us ready to change. When it comes to change, we're most likely to be successful when we wait till we're ready.
INSKEEP: I've realized, Leila, this is kind of what I do. I don't, like, make a big resolution.
FADEL: Yeah.
INSKEEP: I kind of figure out what my resolution is on the - like, how many miles am I going to try to run this year? Am I going to do a dry month or a bunch of damp months or - I'll figure it out.
FADEL: Yeah.
INSKEEP: I'll know by, you know, spring what my...
FADEL: You don't need to have the pressure. The pressure makes you fail.
INSKEEP: Exactly. Exactly. And you'll find out what you're ready for.
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