We swear will keep them but most of us will let New Year’s resolutions slip away as life gets in our
way.
By Mary O’KEEFE
We have the ancient Babylonians to thank for the tradition of making New Year’s
resolutions. It was about 4,000 years ago when ancient Babylonians made their New
Year’s resolutions. They were the first to hold recorded celebrations in honor of the
New Year – though for them the year began in mid-March when crops were planted.
They celebrated with a 12-day religious festival when a new king was crowned or they
reaffirmed their loyalty to the reigning king. They promised to pay their debts and
return any objects they had borrowed throughout the year. These promises are the
forerunners of the present day New Year’s resolutions. If the Babylonians kept their
word they believed their gods would bestow favor for the coming year; if not, they
would fall out of favor of with the gods, according to history.com.

As with everything, there is a science behind making resolutions. Many of the
resolutions made have to do with creating new habits or changing old ones. For
example, people resolve to eat healthier, exercise more, spend less time on social
media or quit smoking.

Below is some information on resolutions from Psychology Today:
Habits are automatic ‘conditioned’ responses. Contrary to popular belief it is not hard
to change habits if it is done based on science. To change an old habit people have to
create a new one; so whether they are changing an existing habit or creating a new
one, the "scientific method” for doing so is the same. People have already created
hundreds of habits and don't even remember how those habits started, so creating a
new habit can’t be that hard or people wouldn’t have so many of them.

To create a new habit it is best to pick a small action. Many times people make
resolutions that look great on paper but are very difficult in practice. Ideas like getting
more exercise or eating healthier are not small. So instead of making a resolution to
“get more exercise” choose to walk one-third more than usual or take the stairs
instead of the elevator or have a healthy smoothie in the morning.

It is advised to attach new actions to previous habits. For example, those who
already go on a walk should just increase the number of days walked or the distance
walked. And ease into a resolution; don’t expect to change everything overnight.

According to studies, 38.5% of adults in the U.S. set New Year’s resolutions
annually but only 9% successfully keep them. And 23% of us abandon the resolutions
within the first week while only 36% make it past the first month. The majority give
up by mid-February.

However setting goals, like New Year’s resolutions, is an optimistic way to
begin the new year. It is a good practice to set goals and follow through and gives
people a sense they are in control of their lives.

The most common resolutions are those related to health, exercise and diet.
For the month of January, CVW will be focusing on those health issues as well as
mental health, children’s health and health for seniors.