"Each year, millions of people declare New Year's resolutions with new hope and promise that this year will be better than the last. It may not surprise you that among North Americans, the resolutions that top the list are weight loss and exercising more. Western norms glorify the thin body, leading us to believe that if we only shed those extra pounds, we'd be happier, more attractive and well-liked people. The imagery is so mainstream that is has become our programmed default desire.
To add to that, January advertising seduces millions of people, beckoning them to buy into it all with headlines that vow: "New Year, New You." There's no escape.
Get flat abs in 30 days.
Lose that muffin top with 12 simple steps.
Drop two dress sizes in two weeks.
The Movie Star's Diet Secrets Revealed.
Shamefully, some of North America's leading health magazines are pumping out unsustainable and unhealthy practices to millions of hopefuls.
Now with February at our feet, those resolutions start to slowly falter and kick our hopeful selves back into a hopeless cycle of attempt and failure, diminishing our self-esteems as our resolutions smolder to nothing-ville.
February is a pivotal point for resolutions, often considered D-day since many of our self-declarations start to slide.
Psychology Today published an article that looks at the success rate of resolutions, and the results are not promising: "The first two weeks usually go along beautifully, but by February people start backsliding and by the following December, most people are back where they started or often further behind."
Psychology professor Peter Herman and his colleagues have identified what they call "false hope syndrome" which means people set resolutions that are significantly unrealistic and out of alignment with their internal view of themselves. In other words, it is difficult to become something you simply can't conceive is possible."
Tip Number 1: Stop Seeking Validation From Others
Tip Number 2: Accept Yourself as You Are
Tip Number 3: Join a Network
Tip Number 4: Give Yourself the Gift of 90 Days
Tip Number 5: Get to Know Your Body
Tip Number 6: Schedule Time
Tip Number 7: Stop Self-Hate Talk
See explanations @ Huffington Post