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<\/a><\/p>\nIf you’re like me, you’re avoiding the scale<\/strong> this week. All of the eating and drinking over the holidays has taken its toll on my hips.\u00a0 I don’t need a scale to tell me that – my zipper does a fine job of letting me know I’ve overindulged.\u00a0 I always make an attempt to form resolutions at the beginning of the year, a time when I feel particularly guilty about my mental and physical state.\u00a0 Most years the ink isn’t dry on the paper I’ve written them on before I’ve broken one.\u00a0 I thought this was true for everyone.\u00a0 But John C. Norcross, a professor of psychology at the University of Scranton has researched New Year’s resolutions and finds that contrary to popular belief, a fair number of people actually do stick to their good intentions<\/strong>.\u00a0 In fact, in a study he conducted of people who wanted to change a behavior, he discovered that more than 40% of those with resolutions stuck with them, while only 4% of the group who didn’t make a resolution achieved the behavioral changes they had in mind.<\/p>\n This year I’ve resolved to get my walking streak up again – perhaps I’ll accomplish it every day<\/strong> this year.\u00a0 Or not.\u00a0 The only thing I can really commit to is eating cake once a month, watching dog videos, and binging programs on Britbox.\u00a0 You can hold me accountable<\/strong> for those last three and I’ll report back next January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Suzanne Sparrow Watson If you’re like me, you’re avoiding the scale this week. All of the eating and drinking over the holidays has taken its toll on my hips.\u00a0 I don’t need a scale to tell me that – … read more![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/reading-300x203.jpg\")
<\/a>In a larger study in Sweden a professor learned that how<\/em> New Year\u2019s resolutions were framed helped determine how effective they were. For example, if you want to spend less time on your phone, you have a better chance if you commit to reading a book than if you delete Instagram.\u00a0 He discovered that starting a new activity is “stickier” than quitting an old one.<\/strong> The new activity quickly transforms from a chore to a habit. The upshot of both studies was that if we want to keep a resolution longer than say, January 10th, it needs to be specific and realistic.\u00a0 One person vowed to begin flossing his teeth every day and a year later he was still on track.\u00a0 That makes me wonder what took him so long to perform this basic hygiene task<\/strong>, but as with all resolutions, we shouldn’t judge.\u00a0 Besides, I’m sure this guy’s dentist was thrilled so actually he made two people happy that year.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/candy-crush-300x241.webp\")
<\/a>A software developer based in Australia built an app called Streaks<\/strong>, a to-do list that functions a bit like a game. When users assign themselves daily tasks, they suddenly feel an urge to complete them: they want to extend their streaks. I get it.\u00a0 I do the same thing with my Fitbit app – trying to extend the number of days I do at least 10,000 steps a day<\/strong>.\u00a0 Two years ago, I was up to 246 days but then had to have some minor surgery.\u00a0 It was not a big deal, but just enough that I couldn’t exercise for a day.\u00a0 Since then, I’ve gotten to 109 days and then broken it again.\u00a0 I think my streak on Candy Crush is now greater than my step goal.<\/p>\n