Do you have your New Year’s Resolution(s) written out yet like millions of Americans have? If you haven’t, I know you’ve made at least one New Year’s Resolution before. As a child in grade school, your teacher probably encouraged you to do so. In my experience, many children (including myself) would set resolutions to become better at math, or better at a sport. You might still yearn for these things, but your resolutions most likely look more like this:

I need to lose weight by working out every day and changing my diet.

Am I right?

While this resolution is actually a wonderful thing to wish for, you’re setting yourself up for failure. The goal to work out every day to lose weight sounds great and all, but, have you started? Have you made it to the gym every single day in January? Have you really changed your eating habits in every single meal?

One of my resolutions is to have more faith in people and trust them until they prove me wrong. I hope I don’t break my resolution by assuming that you most likely have made a mistake thus far in January. I assumed you've dropped the ball already this year because eight percent of people continue with their New Year's Resolutions until December. With that being said, you probably reached for the Pop-Tart on the day you were running late for work, instead of making the smoothie you planned on. You probably missed the gym on Monday because your bed was much more comfortable than starting your car in the five-degree weather.

To your surprise, I actually commend you for sleeping in. Savor that Pop-Tart! We are human thus we WILL make mistakes. It's impossible to be perfect. I know you’ve probably heard that a million times, but when you actually stop and think about it, it’s life changing. Why strive for a perfect life and unrealistic goals when you know that it’s simply unrealistic? We are tricked on social media every day as models and celebrities appear to have a 'perfect' life. Most people don't know that the 100-pound actress is forced to work out three times daily to keep her 'perfect' figure. Is that really the life you want? My mom has always said that life is about balance. This is true in every aspect of our lives. Don’t try to reach perfectionism because you’ll never get there. Rather, set realistic goals and expectations for yourself this year! Ask yourself why you want to reach a goal, and how hard you are willing to work. Set little goals that are attainable, and once you reach them, treat yo-self!

Throw away your 2017 New Years Resolutions, and start over!

Instead of forcing yourself to go to the gym every day, listen to your body! If you need the extra hour of sleep in the morning, going to the gym can actually harm your body. Strive to workout 5 times a week, and change your goal from ‘need’ to ‘will’. Your new goal: “I will workout 5 days a week and eat nutritious food because I love my body and I want to take care of it.”

I hope that you set a realistic New Year's Resolution for 2017 and continue to stick with it until December!