2013 was a big year for Socrates Tiglao. The 34-year-old interior designer in Derwood, Maryland, completed his master’s thesis, received his graduate diploma and started a new job. But with everything going on, his health took a back seat.
“I ate often due to stress, I rarely exercised, I slept terribly … and was sick often,” says Tiglao, whose weight had climbed to 251 pounds over the prior two years. By the time the holiday season rolled around, family members, friends and even strangers were making comments about his size.
“It was then that I knew that I needed a fresh start for the better, so I decided to take action,” he says. So on Jan. 1, 2014, he began working toward his New Year’s resolution to lose weight by cutting down on how much he ate and later better monitoring what he ate. In February of that year, he started hitting the gym for 30 minutes three days a week, alternating between spinning, using the elliptical, running on the treadmill and weight training.
[See: How to Be the New Kid in Fitness Class.]
Eventually, Tiglao was exercising five to six days a week, running with a club and completing road races. By the end of the year, he’d dropped 70 pounds and has since run six full marathons.
“I was hoping to just lose weight, but in reality, I ended up with more than just that,” says Tiglao, who credits his flexible approach and singular goal with his ability to stay on track. “I gained a new hobby of running and gained so many new friends and supporters in my running group.”
Research generally finds that only around 10 to 20 percent of people actually achieve their New Year’s resolutions. So Tiglao’s experience isn’t common, but it’s not isolated, either. Here, five other people who successfully stuck with their resolutions share their stories — and advice for following suit:
Stacey Cha, 29, Dentist in Denver, Colorado
Stacey Cha’s commitments to exercise used to follow a predictable pattern: “I used to not work out, get sick of how I looked, then work out for six months until I became satisfied with how I looked, then stop for another two to three years,” she says. “Repeat cycle.” But on Jan. 1, 2013, she committed to exercising regularly for the sake of health, not vanity.
[See: 6 Reasons You’re Procrastinating on Your Health Goals — and How to Stop.]
Cha made one small change at a time, beginning by eliminating all beverages except water, then improving her cooking. She experimented with different workouts along the way. “Every time I think I look good or feel really good and fit, I see a new change every couple months,” she says. “It feels like a never ending process, and I’m pleasantly surprised every time.”
John Kane, 37, Legislative Policy Professional in the District of Columbia
In 2014, work-life balance wasn’t in John Kane’s vocabulary. It was all work. “I let work become the central part of my life and it overtook my own personal well-being,” says Kane, whose regular runs and cycling sessions had dwindled to twice a week at most. “I realized I could not continue the way I was going if I wanted to continue to be around for my family and friends,” he says.
So before the new year struck, Kane closed out his work obligations and sought a job that promoted a healthy lifestyle. In January, he was more careful about what he ate, worked out more and incorporated new exercise like hot yoga and CrossFit. “I started to see positive changes and, slowly over the next year, I could tell that I was moving into a better place overall in my life,” he says.
Kane has since conquered his fear of weight training, lost body fat, completed a half-marathon in just over two hours and is working with a bodybuilding coach to get into fitness competition shape. “You have to find out why you want to make the change and make sure you are on the path to what makes you happy,” he says. “If you aren’t enjoying the journey, it’s not going to stick.”
Joe English, 47, Multi-Sport Athlete and Coach in Portland, Oregon
Joe English used to train for triathlons and marathons by day, and frequently hang out in bars by night. He was struggling with depression, but came to realize alcohol wasn’t helping his mood and was hurting his athletic performance. So on January 1, 2012, he decided to go on an “alcohol diet” for 30 days. “I had heard that if you can make it 21 days at any life change, you can probably make it stick,” says English, who quit cold turkey, even though that meant losing some friends who tried to undermine his choice in the process.
After 30 days, English decided to see if he could extend his dry streak. He hasn’t had a drink in six years, and has made plenty of new, sober friends since. His advice? “Whatever change it is, whether it be a change in diet or exercising more, you need to have fun, positive moments so that you start to teach your brain that your life can be good and fun without whatever it is your giving up,” he says.
Jackie Diette, 30, Fashion Director in New York City
For years, Jackie Diette was overweight and happy. She had a vibrant social life and didn’t suffer any complications like high cholesterol or diabetes, so, on most days, she ate poorly and avoided exercise at the expense of her long-term health.
But Diette was sick of returning from her annual physical with advice to lose weight, so she signed up for a hospital-based weight-loss program in January 2017. She didn’t want to waste the money, disappoint her nutritionist during regular check-ins or embarrass herself in front of all the family and friends she told about her goal, so she stuck to it. This year, she’s down about 130 pounds, has run a half-marathon and has her sights set on completing a pullup. “Previously, it was just about not looking overweight,” she says. “Now I care about my strength, endurance and being above average with my physical capabilities.”
Samantha Spaulding, 25, Food Scientist in Arlington, Massachusetts
Samantha Spaulding never considered herself a runner. In fact, she actively hated running. But on Jan. 1, 2016, she signed up for a half-marathon in Disneyland anyway. “A big part of my motivation was the fact that I had signed up for this race out of state,” says Spaulding, who had let her fitness slide as she entered the workforce and too often succumbed to the desire to relax, not exercise, after work. “By signing up and booking the trip way ahead of time, it motivated me to stay on track and keep up with the training,” she says.
[See: 10 Themed Races to Make Getting in Shape Fun.]
Not only did Spaulding complete the half-marathon, she also learned to enjoy running. This year, she’s running the Boston Marathon and aiming to raise $7,500 for the Museum of Science in Boston’s traveling programs in the process. The programs help reduce the education gap in New England’s underserved schools and communities. “I was hoping to create a healthy habit and to prove to myself I could do something really hard that I had never imagined doing,” she says. “I definitely feel that it matched up. There was no better feeling than crossing the finish line of the race that day!”
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These 6 People Made Healthy New Year?s Resolutions That Actually Stuck originally appeared on usnews.com
