If anyone was lacking motivation at ‘s group-fitness class at the Downtown Denver YMCA last week, it wasn’t apparent. The room was packed. People were smiling. The music was thumping. And just to make it clear that everyone was sweating through this fitness thing together, Natt would occasionally connect participants by saying something like:
“Look at your neighbor and say, ‘You’ve got this.’ ”
Which resulted in strangers saying to each other, with a pointed finger or a wink, “Hey you’ve got this.”
But this time of the year — a month into a New Year’s resolution to get fit or lose weight, perhaps — is when some people start to think, “I don’t got this.”
In January, the YMCA sees a substantial uptick, Natt says. “More people, classes are busier, the weight room is busier, cardio machines are full — and we have a pretty diverse cardio floor,” says Natt, who is a personal trainer and bodybuilding competitor in the physique category.
But in February, a month into that New Year’s resolution to lose weight or get fit? “After four to five weeks, that’s when we say, life starts to happen,” Natt says.
His observations are in line with an oft-cited , which found that after three to four weeks, only 64 percent of resolutioners were sticking with their goals. And the numbers fall off from there.
There’s no one formula for success, say fitness professionals, but there are consistent factors that come into play — and they’re mostly in our heads.
People concentrate on the physical — the body, the workout, the food — but your mindset is an important part of your resolution or goal, says , medical director of the University of Colorado’s . Wyatt also will serve as the medical director for the upcoming season of the ABC television show “Extreme Weight Loss,” just as she did last season. She has seen plenty of people make and meet big health goals. “I think it’s the missing piece for most people — definitely the missing piece in weight loss — but it’s a missing piece in a lot of things when people want to change a behavior.”
Your why
Wyatt says there are some skills you can learn to make your mental muscle stronger. One of them is finding your own personal, private why — why you’re trying to get fit. It might not be the same as someone else’s why, she says, and it might not work for anyone but you.
“The private why is the one that’s a little more emotional for you — it isn’t something you want to share the with the world — but it is the one that will drive you.
“If you have a relapse, you have to know how to get back on,” she says. Bringing your why back to the front of your mind can help you reset your goals, refresh your memory about why you want this in the first place.
Remembering to stay positive is also a big factor in mental muscle, she says, like focusing on the things you’ll be able to do rather than the things you won’t be able to do.
And when people believe in success, she sees them succeeding. “I believe now if you believe it, you will see it.”
There will be bumps on the road to wellness, she says, so learning how to deal with them is important. “When you make your mental muscle stronger, it’s more resilient, it can bend and not break.”
This mindset is a skill, and it’s an empowering one.
“Your mindset, when you suddenly feel that you have the power, when you suddenly believe that you have the power to change things, it changes everything,” she says.
Then, it’s achievable.
“It may be hard, and they’re going to have to do some things that are uncomfortable … but when they suddenly believe that they can do it, and they no longer believe that they’re a victim in life … they have power in life.”
Getting back on your fitness bandwagon
Dusty DeGroff, a trainer with , says he’s seen a common timeline of inconsistency with people going for big, new goals.
“Those first four weeks, you’re killing it, four, five days a week, you’re dropping pounds, everything’s good.” Then, he says, maybe you’ve adapted to your workout. “You hit that plateau, and you’re starting to get bored.” And you’re not losing weight anymore. You start working out less — it’s not working, anyway. “And then you hit eight to nine weeks, and you’re not losing,” he says. Workout frequency dips to one to two days a week. Then, he says, “you’re not losing anything, and you give up.”
DeGroff says when it comes to resolutions, people go big — sometimes too big, without preparing for it. He doesn’t discourage aiming high; he just asks for time to reach those goals and sets smaller, “smart goals” along the way that are specific, attainable and time-bound. Because big change is tough.
“People talk about that big buzzword, ‘lifestyle.’ But people don’t want to change their lifestyle. They want to go out on Saturday night,” DeGroff says.
Natt cites three major reasons why he sees people fall off their fitness or weight-loss bandwagons: “Education — they might work hard, but they might not work smart” for their particular goal, he says. “Two, they don’t have a goal,” or at least not a specific goal, like losing 30 pounds, or three inches off the waist, or being able to run a 5K. “Three, they don’t set themselves up for success.” People often make unrealistic goals, he says, like working out five days a week when three fits better into their life.
When people give up on change, it’s often coming from inside, Natt says. It’s the things they tell themselves that they can’t let go of, or can’t overcome. “It keeps them a prisoner to whatever lifestyle they’re trying to change,” he says.
For Wyatt, the patients she works with who are successful are “ready to make a change,” she says.
In a slump? Reset, says Wyatt, and go back to your why. “You have to think about it again, get your mind wrapped around it again … and remind yourself why you’re doing it.”
Jenn Fields: 303-954-1599, jfields@denverpost.com or twitter.com/jennfields
New year’s revolution
Dr. Holly Wyatt suggests going public with your goals, for a couple of reasons:
Accountability: Tell your friends and family about your goals — and watch the support pour in.
Connecting with others who share your goal will make what you’re doing the norm. “Behaviors are contagious,” she says.
It’s why she’s offering encouragement and asking people to post about their journey on her Facebook page, , using the hashtag #newyearsrevolution.
