Weight Loss Resolutions: Why Are They Popular And Why Do They Often Fail?

As the beginning of another year kicks off, chances are you have thought at least once (but likely more than once) about the resolutions you want to make for the coming weeks and months. Perhaps the one appearing on the majority of lists for New Year’s Resolutions is trying to lose weight between January and December. Why does this top most lists? And why are we at a disadvantage when it comes to keeping this resolution in the first place? It’s time to dig underneath the surface and discover the answers you’ve always wondered about the extreme popularity and failure rate of weight loss resolutions.

Desire For Reinvention

The vast majority of the populace has at least one thing they don’t like about their body. In many cases, it is something related to weight, whether it’s simply not liking the number on the scale or thinking they have too much weight in the belly, thighs, or another body part. This unhappiness in regards to weight drives a desire for reinvention. Fixing something you are unhappy with means creating a resolve to change! Reinvention is a major key to lifestyle changes many individuals wish to make, especially when linked to weight and appearance. For many of us, losing weight means we will become a whole new person with a new outlook on our lives, new self-image, et cetera. It’s the old adage: new year, new you!

But what else makes losing weight top the list of most popular resolutions?

Guilt Driven Response To Holiday Eating

There’s no doubt about it: the holidays are known for indulgence. This often comes from the holiday parties we receive invites for: large holiday dinners with family and friends, the drinks and snacks involved with a countdown for the New Year, et cetera. The holidays, many will say, are meant to indulge in delicious food from stuffing and turkey to chocolate, cheesecake, alcohol, and any number of desserts your mind can think of.

But with the many opportunities to indulge over the holiday season comes the danger of overindulging. When this happens to us, we often feel guilty about the amount of indulging we have done over the last couple of weeks in the year, even if we don’t need to. The most common response then becomes losing the weight we gained to reverse the effects of the overindulging, which leads us to the next reason why weight loss resolutions top the most popular lists.