Here’s how you can exercise your brain into maintaining your 2026 resolutions

The beginning of every new year comes with resolutions and a vow to leave behind bad habits.

Often the quest to improve health behaviors, such as losing weight, increasing physical activity or quitting tobacco is short-lived.

One study followed 200 people with New Year’s resolutions and reported that 81 percent of them failed to maintain their health behaviors within two years and the reasons vary from person to person.

For example, in the case of cigarettes, people are dealing with a highly addictive product, that is, nicotine. About 95 percent of people relapse after six to 12 months of abstinence when they try to quit smoking on their own.

Regardless of the severity of your addiction or even if you do not have an addiction, change is very hard. People often have not explored their reasons for making the change or how ready they are. 

They also may not have come up with a plan because they may simply not realize how hard it is to change behavior.

While it is normal to experience negative feelings after a failed attempt, these feelings can make a person lose hope in their ability to change if they persist for too long.

However, after a relapse you can learn from your mistakes and try again. Research shows that a person’s odds of success with positive behavior change increase gradually with time, after unsuccessful attempts.

Some tips to understand why you are making your New Year Resolutions are:

• Know the reason for your change. It could be the will to improve your skin care routine or to improve your health and set a better example for your family and anyone who looks up to you.
• Set both short-term and long-term goals when executing change. Researchers have found that these goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely, or SMART. Weekly SMART goals help in achieving long-term goals.
• Track and monitor your behavior as it enhances positive behavior change. You can do this by journaling and note-taking. Many individuals also recommend fitness apps.
• Get help. In some cases, behavior change may be most successful with the help of a professional such as a licensed clinical health psychologist. Trained professionals can provide services such as motivational interviewing, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and acceptance and commitment therapy.