How to keep your fitness resolutions in 2017 and beyond

Ah, the gym in January: overrun with newbies and gym rats, you'll be lucky if you snag a half-broken cross-trainer.

But fear not, if "get fit in 2017" is your New Year's resolution, your goals can be within reach.

We ask Canada's kinesiology and physical education experts for their best tips on how to make, execute and stick with New Year's fitness resolutions. Hint: carry running shoes everywhere, get a gym buddy and forgive yourself when you fall off the fitness wagon.

Set achievable goals

Don't expect to lose 100 lbs or get rock-hard abs in a few weeks. If your goals are unrealistic, you're likely setting yourself up for failure, says Catherine Sabiston, a professor in kinesiology and physical education at the University of Toronto.

Sabiston suggests starting out with small, manageable goals. Once you achieve those, build up to bigger goals over time. Otherwise, you're likely to get discouraged and burnt out, she said.

Find a gym buddy, or pay for one

A workout partner can be a great way to hold yourself accountable to your fitness goals, said Stuart Phillips, a professor in the department of kinesiology with McMaster University.

For some people, that person will be a friend. For others — a pricey personal trainer.

"There's nothing like having to be accountable to somebody else, or maybe also being accountable to your pocketbook, if you're paying for that person, to reinforce doing the behaviour," said Phillips.

If you're not motivated one day, your friend or personal trainer will hopefully give you the extra push you need to stick with your new habit, he said.

Prepare in advance

Plan ahead to make sure you're heading-to-the-gym routine is as painless as possible, said Sabiston. Pack your gym bag and leave it by the door, or leave a pair of running shoes under your desk. This way, you'll have fewer excuses for not exercising, she said.

Cut yourself some slack

If it's January 15 and you're thinking about dropping your fitness resolution, that's okay, said Sabiston.

"Once you set a goal it's not set in stone so you can never change it," she said. "Giving up on a goal is not necessarily a bad thing."

Instead of dropping your resolution entirely, consider reevaluating the goal and scaling it back, suggests Sabiston.

Monitor your progress

By tracking your progress using a wearable fitness tracker, a pedometer, a fitness app or even an old fashioned exercise diary, studies suggest you'll be better able to ascertain how far you've come and more likely to maintain your achievements, says Robert Ross, a professor in the school of kinesiology and health studies at Queen's University.

"Often, people aren't aware of how sedentary or active they are," said Ross. "It's a daily reminder — a way of making sure we're not fooling ourselves."

However, you still shouldn't expect any fitness or weight loss miracles. One recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that young obese adults who wore wearable fitness trackers didn't lose more weight than their non-tracker-wearing counterparts.

Make if-then plans

There are lots of sneaky ways we excuse ourselves from doing exercise, blaming bad weather, bad traffic, being hungover or feeling tired for our inability to workout.

Stop making excuses and make an "if-then" list instead, said Sabiston. To do this, brainstorm all the exercise obstacles you might face, then writing down what you'll do if you find yourself in that situation, she said. For instance, if there's a snowstorm, try an online yoga video instead.

Do it for the right reasons

Don't plunk down two month's rent on a gym membership, hoping to guilt yourself into exercising.

"The key is to find things that you really enjoy because we're not going to keep doing things we don't enjoy," said Sabiston.

She suggests experimenting with different exercises, figuring out what works for you, and then committing to a routine. Aim to find a routine you find challenging but not overly intimidating, rewarding and fun, she said.

Katrina Clarke is a Toronto-based journalist who writes about relationships, health, technology and social trends. You can find her on Twitter at @KatrinaAClarke.