It’s been a month since the new year began and if there is something that always predominates between the change of one year and another is  ‘New Year’s resolutions’ many of which include weight loss.

But what happens to those series of personal goals you set to meet in a few months? Actually, there are a few who manage to fulfill their resolutions, and even so, those who achieve their goals do not do so as they originally intended.

According to Statista, a survey conducted in 2018 shows that the top resolutions for Americans fall under the “want to get healthy” category, from exercising more to eating healthier are all factors that help someone lose weight.

Health education teacher Nicole Luedtke shared tips that can help people develop healthy habits.

Finding time to exercise on a busy schedule can be difficult, but it is manageable.

“Yes, you should try to get 60 minutes (of exercise) in a day, but it doesn’t have to be all at one time. Split it out if you have to,” Luedtke said. “It’s actually more realistic for a lot of people, to do smaller segments. They’re just as beneficial as if you were just exercising for the whole hour at one time.”

Not having a gym membership should not be an excuse, workout apps work too.

“On youtube, they have the HIIT (workout videos) and most of them are short, but they are high intensity which is good,” Luedtke said. “If you only have 30 minutes to work out that day then pick out a high-intensity workout, but start off slow. If you jump into something that is too hard you are not going to stick with it. Work your way up.”

Strength training is especially important to those that are trying to lose weight efficiently.

“I think especially females get stuck in this whole cardio thing when really you burn more calories and more fat post workout if you’ve done some sort of strength training,” Luedtke said. “It can even be bodyweight strength training, if you’re doing squats even if you don’t have dumbbells or a squat bar, you’re still squatting your own body weight.”

Regarding eating habits, Luedtke advises people to eat natural food.

“Rethink the whole calories things, a lot of people are obsessed with counting calories,” Luedtke said. “A bag of Cheetos that you’re eating is 210 calories, that’s the same as eating three small apples, or is the same thing as eating six clementines. If you really want to get healthy but not drive yourself crazy with counting numbers, eat real food.”

Planning ahead with meal prepping is something Luedtke recommends.

“I cut up apples, carrots, or sweet peppers for the week and I make five bags of each,” Luedtke said. “That’s a quick and easy thing to grab for my lunch on the way out. It’s actually a lot easier to eat healthy if you just plan ahead a bit.”

Avoiding temptations can be difficult, but there are options, it’s all up to the individual.

“Don’t buy stuff from the cafeteria, try to avoid the vending machines, or find the things that are healthier if you do have to get food from the cafeteria,” Luedtke said. “It’s just about making better choices.”

‘Cheat’ days do exist and they are “okay, but in moderation. It shouldn’t be something that you have every day,” Luedtke said.

According to Luedtke, there are ways to ‘cheat’ on your diet without ruining it.

“Don’t serve yourself (ice cream) in a bowl. I like little 10 oz mugs because if you filled that mug you feel like you have a ton when really you don’t, you’re just putting it in a smaller container,” Luedtke said. “Same with the cookies, don’t sit there and eat the whole bag, only take out what you need and put the rest away.”

People may want changes fast, but “little changes here and there actually go a big way, and they motivate you to eventually change more,” Luedtke said.