Making New Years Resolutions Last

January has a certain energy. New calendars, fresh intentions, and the quiet belief that this might finally be the year everything clicks. Motivation is high, plans are ambitious, and routines feel easy. Until, usually somewhere in February, real life shows up.

At Kracht Amsterdam, we see January differently. Not as a time for extreme promises, but as the perfect moment to build habits that actually survive the rest of the year.

The good news is this. You do not need more willpower. You need better habits. When you focus on daily behaviour, you regain control over what actually matters. Showing up for your habits is largely within your control, and each repeatable action creates a small sense of progress and accomplishment. Where those habits ultimately lead will reveal itself over time, but the consistency you build today is the part you can influence right now.

Make January Easy to Win

January enthusiasm often leads to overambitious plans. Five workouts a week. Perfect nutrition. No flexibility. This is where many resolutions quietly collapse.

Lasting habits are built by making the right actions easy and repeatable.

Instead of asking how hard you can push, ask what you can repeat.

Strong January habits often look like:

• Training a realistic number of times per week and protecting those sessions

• Focusing on achievable monthly progression goals instead of a single number for the year

• Eating in a way that supports energy and recovery rather than strict rules

• Treating sleep and recovery as part of training, not an afterthought

These actions may seem simple, but simplicity is what makes them sustainable. Now that's not to say that you can't set hard goals. By all means do! But the art is in translating those into actions that you can execute on a day-to-day basis and repeat over and over.

Need help with setting these habits or goals? Talk to one of our trainers, or check out our options for nutrition coaching or personal training!

Think About Who You Want to Be

Most resolutions focus on outcomes. Lose weight. Get fitter. Train harder. While those goals are great, they often fail because they are too far removed from daily behavior. Once you start connecting those to behaviour and habits it becomes easier to achieve them.

Who do you want to be this year?

• Someone who trains even when life gets busy

• Someone who feels strong, capable, and confident in their body

• Someone who performs or excels in the gym 

• Someone who takes care of their health without turning it into a full time job

When your habits support your identity, consistency becomes easier. You are not trying to force yourself to train. You are simply acting like the kind of person who trains.

Focus on Small Improvements That Add Up

You do not need a complete overhaul. You need small improvements that compound. Stack success to help you keep going!

A slightly better warm-up. A bit more attention to technique. More consistent meals. An extra walk on rest days. And once a habit sticks, you add a new one. Over weeks and months, these small choices create noticeable change.

Skill based goals can be especially powerful. Improving how you move, lift, and breathe creates confidence and progress without relying on constant motivation. Having guidance can make this process smoother and faster, especially when you are learning new skills or refining old ones.

If this is something you're into, check out our workshops in the schedule, or check the options for personal training here.

Build Consistency Before Chasing Intensity

January often encourages an all or nothing mindset. Train hard or not at all. Eat perfectly or give up. And often multiple of these big ambitious goals are set at once. However, real progress lives somewhere in between.

Consistency beats intensity every time. Showing up regularly at a manageable effort builds momentum. Once consistency is established, intensity can be layered in naturally.

Structure helps here. Whether it is support with training, help dialing in nutrition habits, or simply having a plan to follow, the right structure reduces decision fatigue and keeps habits on track.

Working in small steps with 1 or 2 changes at a time additionally eliminates the risk of giving up on everything, when 2 or 3 of the 10 goals aren't going as planned.

Train for This Month and all the Months and Years After

We often overestimate what can change in a few weeks and underestimate what consistent effort can do over months and years. A 2kg deadlift increase does not sound exciting on its own. Stack that same habit twelve times, though, and you are suddenly lifting 24kg more a year from now. Small progress feels boring in the moment, but it becomes impressive when you let it compound. Imagine how cool you'd look with another 24kgs on your barbell!

That is why many resolutions stall. They are built around short-term milestones. A holiday. A summer goal. A number on the scale. These can be useful motivators, but they are fragile if they are the only thing holding your habits together.

Strength, muscle mass, conditioning, and movement quality work differently. They reward patience. Every session you show up for quietly adds to a long-term reserve that supports how you move, feel, and perform, not just this year, but for decades.

Seen this way, January is not about urgency or pressure. It is about choosing a direction and then taking small, repeatable steps that move you there.

A Lighter January Reset

You do not need a perfect plan. You do not need extreme discipline. If you have to rely on discipline to fight resistance every step, you're bound to loose at some point. You need habits that fit your life, that start making your goals part of daily life, things you do without thinking.

Start small. Make it repeatable. Let January be about building systems you can live with, not resolutions you have to survive.

If this year feels different, that is usually a sign you are doing it right.

10 Gym Inspired Resolutions and the Small Habits That Support Them

To make these resolutions more actionable, we can make them SMART. Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound. The resolution gives direction, the habit makes it happen.

1. Increase your main lifts by 10 to 15 percent over the next 6 months

Habit: Attend at least one strength class every week.

2. Improve 5k time by 5 minutes next year

Habit: Do one easy run per week or consistently join the Engine classes on Sunday.

3. Learn or significantly improve at least one new gym skill within the next 6 months

Habit: Commit to joining at least half of the skill workshops offered during that period.

4. Lose 3 to 6 percent of bodyweight over the next 8 months while maintaining training performance.

Anchor every main meal around a clear protein source and eat at consistent times.

5. Train consistently and maintain a minimum of two training sessions per week

Schedule your sessions in advance and treat them as non-negotiable appointments.

6. Improve movement quality and reduce aches

Habit: Spend five to ten minutes on a structured warm up or mobility work before every session.

7. Improve recovery and daily energy levels

Habit: Set and maintain a consistent weekday sleep and wake time.

8. Build confidence with Olympic lifts

Habit: Join the olympic weightlifting class or a regular class with weightlifting every week .

None of these resolutions rely on extremes and is supported by a small habit you can repeat. When habits feel manageable, they are easier to maintain. When they repeat, results follow.

January does not need to be dramatic to be effective. Choose a clear direction, tie it to simple actions, and let time do the heavy lifting.