Washington, Jan 4 (ANI): With the New Year comes new resolutions, but we often end up breaking those promises and wait for next year.

Now, G. Alan Marlatt, director of the University of Washington’s Addictive Behaviours Research Centre has offered some tips for keeping your resolutions.

1. Just make a few resolutions

In his study, Marlatt has found that people who make more than three resolutions at a time tended to break more of these vows. He suggests pairing up resolutions that complement each other might work. For example, if you decide to stop overeating, also pledge to start exercising.

2. Choose your resolutions wisely

“People either make resolutions to stop doing something, like quit smoking, or to start something new, like exercise,” LiveScience quoted Marlatt as saying. People tend to fail more often with the “stop” resolutions. That’s because if you vow to stop eating sweets and you have just one brownie, you’ve effectively broken the resolution.

3. Get back on the wagon

People who break a resolution and then blame themselves with, “This proves I have no willpower,” are likely to give up. A more productive inner dialogue would say something like, “I had one cigarette but I’ve got to make sure I tell my friends that I’m quitting so this doesn’t happen again,” Marlatt said. “Try to be a little bit more accepting of the fact that you may make a mistake.”

4. Come up with a strategy

In addition to initial motivation, it’s good prepare a strategy. If you decide to start eating healthier foods and less junk, figure out a plan for how to tackle your food habits.

5. Keep a diary

Research has shown that people who keep track of their resolution changes do better at sticking to their pledges than others. The diary might include situations in which you found it difficult to get to the gym or avoid a cigarette, along with ways you could handle the situation in the future, Marlatt added.”Behavior and habit changes are very difficult for many people. On the other hand success brings a lot of rewards,” said Marlatt. (ANI)