How To Stick To Health & Fitness New Year's Resolutions

Now that 2026 is under way, no doubt you’re all approaching the start of a new year with vim and vigour, full of optimism about the future - and ready to smash all your resolutions to smithereens!

If health and fitness has topped the list of your goals this year, you certainly won’t be alone in this, as these are always very popular resolutions for people to make, whether that’s eating more fruit and veg, hitting the gym more regularly, getting better sleep or cutting back on bad habits like smoking.

In January our resolve is pretty high, but fast forward a few months and motivation may well start to waver a little, with the temptation to fall back into negative thought patterns and behaviours proving too much for some of us.

However, if this does sound a little familiar, don’t give yourself a hard time. Goals and ambitions are, by nature, hard to achieve but remember that you put these resolutions in place for a reason… and even if you do stumble on occasion, that doesn’t mean you should just give up.

There are loads of strategies you can implement that will help facilitate success and get you where you want to be this year, and we've pulled together just a few ways to help you hit your health and fitness goals and even perhaps exceed them in 2026 and beyond.!

1. Follow a rewards-based system

Break your goals up into smaller more achievable chunks and then reward yourself every time you hit one. All the little chunks will soon add up to one big one and, before you know it, the main goal will have been achieved.

For example, if you’ve set yourself the challenge of doing unassisted pull-ups by the end of the year, you’ll want to work progressively to get the desired end result.

Work your way up from bent over dumbbell rows to inverted bodyweight rows, assisted pull-ups with a resistance band, top holds and bar hangs and negative pull-ups, before trying your first unassisted pull-up without a resistance band.

Every time you level up, reward yourself with something you’ve been longing for, whether that’s some brand-new gym kit (check out our student discounts for amazing offers), stock up on some new supplements to keep you in fine fettle or get your hands on the latest wearable tech.

2. Buddy up!

A problem shared is a problem halved, so they say, and if you’re worried that you’ll struggle to keep yourself accountable with your health and fitness resolutions, why not phone a friend and get them to join in with you?

You’re sure to have at least one pal out there with similar aspirations for the next 12 months, so why not make some joint goals for mutual encouragement?

Go to the gym together (we’ve got some great new gym membership discounts running right now), focus on meal prep (the likes of Green Chef and Hello Fresh can help with this!) or start your own fun running club (gotta get yourself some new trainers to sweeten the deal!).

Before you know it, you’ll both be feeling on top of the proverbial world!

3. Make it fun!

Just because you’ve made your new year’s resolutions to find that happier, healthier you doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun along the way.

If the thought of spending an hour on the treadmill or stair machine fills you with dread and you know you’d much rather be at home catching your favourite new show on Netflix, why not just combine the two?

Get out your smartphone or tablet (that’s right, we’ve got some incredible technology deals, discounts and offers running at the moment), stick it in front of you and away you go. Before you know it, that hour will have gone by in a flash!

4. Avoid making vague resolutions

When making your resolutions in the first place, it can be very useful to be as specific as possible with what you want to achieve.

Of course, the likes of losing weight, getting in shape and eating healthier are all lofty ambitions and worth achieving but without defining exactly what each of these mean to you and without working out exactly what you’ll need to do, you’ll never get where you want to be.

Instead, if you know you want to follow a healthier diet, consider breaking this down to tackle what you need to, such as cooking more meals at home, drinking less alcohol (replacing booze with nutrient-rich juices, for example) or drinking more water for top-notch hydration (check out our discounts on Chilly’s bottles that can help with this!).

5. Don’t over-resolve!

Making over your life is a brave undertaking and not something that everyone has the courage to attempt… so congratulations to those of you who have taken the decision to make significant changes to your lifestyle this year.

However, don’t fall into the trap of trying to change everything all at once. You’ll likely set yourself up to fail if you do - and that can be very disheartening indeed.

Instead, review the year just gone to work out what your priority areas are and really dial down into those over the next 12 months. Once those are all taken care of and you’re happy with your progress, you can then divert your attention elsewhere!