ASU professor reveals the real secret to keeping resolutions

With a new year comes an opportunity for new beginnings. What those new beginnings look like for each person varies, but there is one constant: maintaining those resolutions can be difficult for many people.

About 1 in 10 people who don't make resolutions say it's because they break them too easily. So why are some people able to persist through goals they’ve set for themselves while others fail?

Kristin Hoffner, an assistant dean and teaching professor at Arizona State University's College of Health Solutions, studies health psychology, behavior change theory and motivational theory.

Hoffner, who teaches kinesiology courses through ASU Online, says the key is discipline, not motivation. Motivation fades, but sustained progress comes from discipline, routine and self-compassion.

“Resolutions should not be an all-or-nothing,” she said. “Many resolutions are actually keys to a healthy lifestyle. These are things that are critical to include in our daily lives. There will be times when we may falter or 'fail' and then times that we are all in and fully invested.”

Part of that process, she shared, is giving yourself grace and finding something you enjoy doing within the goal you set for yourself to maintain the activity.

Below, she shares some strategies and technologies that can help maintain resolutions, especially when it comes to fitness.

Note: Answers have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Question: Why do some individuals maintain exercise habits while others struggle despite similar physical abilities?

Answer: There are so many individual barriers to consider when it comes to maintaining exercise consistency/habits. Time and priorities are a big one, as time is the top-cited barrier to exercise behaviors in adults.

I think the other major thing to consider is the “why” behind the exercise behaviors. We see higher levels of consistency with motives for health, longevity or stress relief, compared with people who exercise with a motive for weight loss, appearance or aesthetics.

Finally, I think we need to shift how exercise fits within our identity. Exercise is not for a certain type of person. Movement is required for a healthy lifestyle and overall health-related quality of life. If we can build exercise and fitness into our sense of self, or self-schema, it is easier to build them into our lifestyle.

Q: How do kinesiology professionals use behavior-change models to improve motivation?

A: The thing with behavior change models is that they are attempting to be one-size-fits-all models, when in reality, they are really effective for some behaviors and not so effective for others. 

Many constructs from behavior change models are very effective in improving motivation for exercise — things such as attitude toward the behavior, perceived behavioral control, benefits of the behavior and barriers to the behavior. Additionally, self-efficacy, or your belief in your ability to succeed at specific tasks or situations, is very useful in behavior change and is specifically effective in physical activity behavior change.

The problem with many behavior change theories is that they also may rely on fear-based behavior change — things like raising perceived severity and susceptibility to disease to scare people into changing. While this is effective in certain behaviors, such as substance use, it has not been well supported with lifestyle behaviors such as diet and exercise.

Focusing on the adaptive constructs within behavior change models can be helpful in improving motivation.

Q: What role do cognitive strategies (e.g., self-talk, goal setting, visualization) play in maintaining workout motivation?

A: Mental skills/cognitive strategies are critical. Self-talk is so important in everything that we do. Shifting the mindset does so much for motivation, and this is rooted in the things that we tell ourselves.

One of my favorite theories is the self-determination theory, which says that there are three basic psychological needs that humans are motivated to meet/fulfill. These needs are competence, autonomy and relatedness. If we can shift our thinking and self-talk to view our “have to's” as behaviors that fulfill our three basic needs, we experience a motivation shift. 

For example, I am a person who uses the Peloton platform for my exercise activities. This platform fosters relatedness through their community feel — I talk to my friends about my workouts, join teams and challenges, and relate to the things that the instructors say. Competence is fostered through the tailored workouts ... so all can feel successful, and badges and rewards (are given) when hitting goals and milestones. Autonomy is fostered through the choices and options that are given and the home-based nature of the workouts. 

Goal setting helps to motivate by focusing our attention and mobilizing our efforts. Goal setting is highly effective and helps to shift our behavior and make choices that we may have missed or skipped otherwise. We also need to be mindful about the types of goals that we are setting for ourselves. Specific, objective goals are the most effective; l, performance-based goals are controllable. We want to set “us” vs. “us” goals to lower anxiety, increase confidence, self-efficacy and focus, and impact our self-talk.

Q: What is the relationship between exercise-induced mood changes and motivation to continue exercising?

A: It depends on the person, but I think this does provide motivation for people who are consistent exercisers. They know it can be tough at first, but the endorphin and serotonin changes will come. Exercise has a research-backed stress-relieving, anxiolytic and anti-depressant effect. I think the problem is that we need to get through motivation issues with discipline and self-talk that reminds us that we will feel better once we are done. Exercise is always worth it!

Q: How do wearable fitness technologies influence motivation and behavior change?

A: Wearable technologies impact motivation and behavior change because they facilitate goal setting, give specific measurable outcomes and impact accountability. These go hand-in-hand with goal-setting programs. Obtaining measurable and accurate feedback on your progress is critical to maintaining motivation through a goal program. The stats don’t lie, and it helps you to adhere to a goal when you can see your progress each day. Also, people are inherently more motivated to change their behaviors when they know they are tracked or accountable for them.