I feel sorry for the new year resolutioners..

I have NEVER understood why people pick Monday or a date to start. my ex colleague used to say " Im so excited to start Jenny Craig on Monday! "

Next week it would be " I'm so stoked about my protein shakes starting on Monday! "

Yeah, they never worked.

I was lying in bed one night. July 6th this year, and was so fed up of being overweight and trying and failing, that I cried myself to sleep. I woke up the next day and got started. 5 days later I reactivated MFP and have never looked back. Have just looked at the calendar and July 6th is a Saturday. Some people wouldn't dare start on a Saturday!!

Im so friggin stoked that this new year I will finally be able to NOT worry that I haven't lost any weight this year! I'm at the lowest of my life. WOOOO!!!

Because Monday sounds like an official beginning? Idk? I was a Monday starter. Then, I'd fail by Thursday, get down on myself, and wait for Monday again. This last time, when it actually clicked, I believe I started on a Tuesday or Wednesday. I haven't been perfect, but I've been good to restart my efforts at least by the next day, and sometimes, by the next meal. I think, for me, official start dates are a symptom of my perfectionism. Giving up when I can't be perfect is the outcome of that. So, I had to relax and try to learn from my mistakes, rather than waiting for the next "clean start." 35 +/- lbs. later, it appears to be helping. :-)

Oh, and congrats on your achiements!

I started MFP on a Thursday.

Sorry, typing on my phone before: *achievements,* not achiements.

I started my "weight loss journey" (I know. A loathsome term, for another topic, but it fits my situation) on a Tuesday or Wednesday in April a couple of years ago. I lost 25 lbs. then stalled for months and turned to MFP for direction, so when I started MFP isn't significant to me...neither is when I started at all. I'm just glad I finally started! haha! :happy:

I wish all the resolutioners the best of luck. I know that I personally joined MFP prior to Jan 1 in order to avoid the label "resolutioner," because I would have found the label a handy, ready-made excuse for failure, and I was not willing to accept that excuse.

Many folks who start a weight-loss or fitness program these days do so filled with a quick-fix mindset fueled by the instant gratification mindset encouraged by most of society and things like "The Biggest Loser." As such, they get frustrated when they don't lose 20# or become ridiculously ripped in the first month, figure that they're failing somehow, and stop trying. This happens year-round, but the New Year's Resolution phenomenon amplifies the issue.

Oddly, it was Biggest Loser that inspired me to finally DO SOMETHING! I recognized that I wouldn't get the same types of results, because I didn't have as much weight to lose and because I was going to attempt it with diet alone. I agree, though, that many people probably do have unrealistic expectations to start based on shows like BL. Totally valid point.

But, I think we all had the instant gratification mindset that we have all learned to minimize in order to be successful.

Prior to this whole patience concept clicked with me (when I actually followed through to see results), this was me:

:laugh:

Sometimes it might take 30 attempts before you succeed but each failed attempt is part of the overall success story.

^^Agreed. I'm stubborn. I always tell people that, "It ONLY took me 5 times to quit smoking." So, for me, every attempt to "diet" was an exercise in what didn't work, which led to what DID work for me.

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison (Unfortunately, in the case of dieting, there was no reason for me to "re-invent the wheel," as there was plenty of information out there on it...and plenty of MISINFORMATION on the topic, as well. I had to wade through the misinformation (still am) to get "here.")

"I never did anything worth doing entirely by accident.... Almost none of my inventions were derived in that manner. They were achieved by having trained myself to be analytical and to endure and tolerate hard work." - Thomas Edison

The reality is at any time most people who try to make a big change will fail but some will succeed. I think you should always be supportive of anybody who is trying to change. Sometimes it might take 30 attempts before you succeed but each failed attempt is part of the overall success story.

Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better. - Samuel Beckett

Okay, for me this is a prime example of the silly, annoying stuff that bugs me about the site and probably is what the OP was referring to. How in the world is this beneficial to ANYONE except upsetting the poster? I guess some people find it funny, but I don't. I see someone that has too much time on their hands, and a bunch of followers that think it is so cool. I hate trying to read a thread with this kind of garbage in it.

12 pages long, plenty of reading for someone who hates reading threads with this much garbage. If you hate doing it, then ... um, don't? If you click on a thread and realize at page 1 that you're getting irritated or upset, there's always a back button.

Next year starts on a Wednesday. How is that going to work?

Decide whether a "Monday start date" or a "January 1st start date" is more important to you? ha!

I think I rather start yesterday.

lol I was a "mid-day" Sunday starter. I had already had McDonalds for breakfast and something else highly caloric when I decided and started with a healthy afternoon snack.

my first day on mfp started with a slice of warmed up pizza. When I finished it I started. I then found the chicken pineapple pizza frkm papa john's in the database and decided I would do just fine if I didnt grab a second slice.

Everyone on here seem to be expecting them all to fail! Surely you should cut out your judgmental horrible personalities and support anyone who joins here, anyone who succeeds or fails. When they came here their ambition was to succeed afterall!

I think some of it is very similar to the mindset of combat troops from WWII through Viet Nam where new personnel and replacements would join their units out in the field. The old timers wouldn't be too energetic about getting to know the new arrivals because of the odds that new, inexperienced personnel would make mistakes, get injured, or die. Only once the new arrival had been around long enough to show they either had or learned the skills to survive would the old crew warm up to them.

Here, it's similar. We'll all likely see another round of new, enthusiastic people. However, experience shows that many of these new arrivals will not be around very long. Some will be unable or unwilling to make the time commitment. Some will be disillusioned with their progress. Some will find they don't like the gym atmosphere. They're all the same reasons any newcomer, regardless of when they start, may quit. But there tends to be a larger number of them when 1 January rolls around. As a result, the people who've been going to the gym for a while can easily see resolutioners as a group where most of the members (but not all) are really only temporary annoyances- not people they'll get to know.

Personally, I think doing it as a new years resolution can be a bit of sabotage in itself. It's great that they find a reason to get active. But I dont' think all of them appreciate what they're getting into.

For one thing, there's the argument against having a start date "down the road" because what is the guarantee that, when the new year starts, you won't just keep kicking it down the road? There was one time when I said I was going to start a new training regimen on Monday. Monday came, but I was busy. Well, I was supposed to work out Monday / Wednesday / Friday, so with Monday gone, why do the other two days? And I kicked the can down the road to the next week. Monday was busy, again. Lather, rinse, repeat, and the next thing I knew a month had gone by and I was still doing my old workout.

The other issue that I don't know they're aware that they'll face is self consciousness issues. These boards are rife with people talking about how self conscious they feel. When everyone is starting their new resolutions on the first of the year, not only are some of them going to be self conscious, between looking at what the old timers are doing and all the other things resolutioners around them are doing, but they're doing it in an abnormally crowded situation. The crowds of resolutioners may cause individuals to feel uncomfortable and stop coming even though the crowds during the rest of the year might not be large enough to have the same effect.


So I do expect to see a sea of new faces in the gym when the year starts, and I expect many of them will show up for a brief period of time and then stop coming. But I will treat them the same way I treat everyone else.

I think some of it is very similar to the mindset of combat troops from WWII through Viet Nam where new personnel and replacements would join their units out in the field. The old timers wouldn't be too energetic about getting to know the new arrivals because of the odds that new, inexperienced personnel would make mistakes, get injured, or die. Only once the new arrival had been around long enough to show they either had or learned the skills to survive would the old crew warm up to them.

Here, it's similar. We'll all likely see another round of new, enthusiastic people. However, experience shows that many of these new arrivals will not be around very long. Some will be unable or unwilling to make the time commitment. Some will be disillusioned with their progress. Some will find they don't like the gym atmosphere. They're all the same reasons any newcomer, regardless of when they start, may quit. But there tends to be a larger number of them when 1 January rolls around. As a result, the people who've been going to the gym for a while can easily see resolutioners as a group where most of the members (but not all) are really only temporary annoyances- not people they'll get to know.

Personally, I think doing it as a new years resolution can be a bit of sabotage in itself. It's great that they find a reason to get active. But I dont' think all of them appreciate what they're getting into.

For one thing, there's the argument against having a start date "down the road" because what is the guarantee that, when the new year starts, you won't just keep kicking it down the road? There was one time when I said I was going to start a new training regimen on Monday. Monday came, but I was busy. Well, I was supposed to work out Monday / Wednesday / Friday, so with Monday gone, why do the other two days? And I kicked the can down the road to the next week. Monday was busy, again. Lather, rinse, repeat, and the next thing I knew a month had gone by and I was still doing my old workout.

The other issue that I don't know they're aware that they'll face is self consciousness issues. These boards are rife with people talking about how self conscious they feel. When everyone is starting their new resolutions on the first of the year, not only are some of them going to be self conscious, between looking at what the old timers are doing and all the other things resolutioners around them are doing, but they're doing it in an abnormally crowded situation. The crowds of resolutioners may cause individuals to feel uncomfortable and stop coming even though the crowds during the rest of the year might not be large enough to have the same effect.


So I do expect to see a sea of new faces in the gym when the year starts, and I expect many of them will show up for a brief period of time and then stop coming. But I will treat them the same way I treat everyone else.

This was very well thought-out and written. I can only hope that it doesn't fall of deaf ears. Or would that be blind eyes?

Next year starts on a Wednesday. How is that going to work?

Decide whether a "Monday start date" or a "January 1st start date" is more important to you? ha!

I think I rather start yesterday.

I was joking, obviously. Jeez!

The majority of them will fail. That's just a reality. Does that mean they get less support from me? No, but I think someone waiting for a start date to change their life already has the wrong attitude going in.

I agree that waiting for a start date is the wrong attitude and that the statistics show that most of them will fail. But we have to consider that for many people it isn't the start date that made them wait for new years. Many people don't even think about it until some conversation or event gets them to think. I would venture to say that most people that are successful have had that very specific event that caused them to take stock and do something about it.
For the new year resolutioners (I like that name), it could be a holiday meal, too much to drink on new years or just some plain old fashioned "taking a moment to think about my life". Since these are all things we do during the holiday season, I think they should get the benefit of doubt.

Each month I like to try to make incremental improvements in my lifestyle so that I don't tackle huge challenges all at once.

If each each month you think about something both small enough to be manageable and specific enough to be clear and concrete, over the course of a year you can make some pretty big changes. Plus they're more likely to stick and see results with, if they're small and specific.

Of course not all the changes will stick, some will slide and slide again, but eventually if you keep trying - and you have enough motivation to maintain the effort - I believe most worthwhile things can eventually be achieved.

I find the beginning of each month a handy prompt to think about making small improvements in my life, simply because I have to turn my calendar over and I'm faced with a clean page.

The majority of them will fail. That's just a reality. Does that mean they get less support from me? No, but I think someone waiting for a start date to change their life already has the wrong attitude going in.

Can't agree more... I also resent the fact that my gym will be a zoo until like January 15th.

I hate that. I won't be able to get a good full workout in unless I'm there waiting in line for equipment for hours...

It is crazy in January! But on a positive note, I am loving how empty the gym is this time of year. It's almost empty.

I think the real problem with setting a start date, whether it's Jan 1 or a Monday or first of the month, is that it establishes a mindset that getting healthy involves suffering - whether it's depriving yourself of your favorite foods, having to live with hunger pains on a regular basis, or enduring pain and/or boredom from exercise. If you go about it that way, then the prospect of sustaining that healthy lifestyle for the rest of your life is incredibly bleak.

On the other hand, getting healthy can actually mean eating better tasting AND more satiating food, as well as doing physical activities that are fun/rewarding enough to make you honestly look forward to them, then waiting for some arbitrary date to start really doesn't make much sense.

I reached my weight loss goal today, a week after Thanksgiving and a few weeks before Christmas. Conventional wisdom would dictate that this would be the hardest time to reach a weight loss goal. I just kicked conventional wisdom's *kitten*. :bigsmile:

Waiting for some arbitrary calendar date to get started is just procrastination—and procrastination bespeaks of lack of discipline. While I wouldn't say you need a LOT of discipline to lose weight, you do need some, and you need to use it wisely. I think people who do the New Year's resolution thing have probably bought into a bunch of other bad habits and faulty logic that will hinder their efforts, and lead to failure. Most of them will probably join gyms, thinking that in order to lose weight, you have to run yourself ragged with exhausting exercise. They'll also probably eat lots and lots of "healthy" or "clean" foods, thinking that it's the magic bullet for weight loss. And come the second week of January, the Getting Started forum will be flooded with "OMG what gives?!" threads, bemoaning their lack of success.

And a few of them might even start counting their calories and macros. You'll recognize that group later in the year, because they will be the ones who have actually lost weight. :bigsmile: