Beware the New Year's grift

You don't need to detox. That doesn't mean motivation is bad.

New beginnings produce fresh ambitions.

Or, at times, rehashes old ones. 

I’m accustomed to this trend, having worked in gyms for 16 years, having worked out in them far longer.

January energy is splendid. Yet like any relationship, embarking on a new journey requires diligence and discipline. Self-understanding. Motivation.

Along with the turning of the year comes an onslaught of fitness bros and wellness influencers selling you supplements and sessions. While there’s nothing wrong with working with working with a coach or instructor, the endless verbiage about “detoxing” and “transformation” is more marketing hype than helpful guidance, especially in online spaces.

Which is where people spiral. Forming new habits is hard. After the initial rush, life sets back in. By mid-February, the gym swell reduces. Machines open up again. Classes level off.

Here’s what I’ve learned from spending so much time in gyms and observing these patterns, as well as from teaching thousands of classes.

Have fun.

Sounds trite. It’s not. I’ve watched too many people force themselves to undertake forms of exercise they don’t enjoy. It rarely sticks. 

Rarely, because sometimes dread transforms into obsession. You loathe a movement you’re unaccustomed to. Yet it intrigues you. Over time, as muscle memory becomes mastery, you find something unexpected. You love what you previously hated.

An edge case—one worth considering while understanding its rarity. For the most part, start with what you want to do, and try to stick to it. 

Then: don’t beat yourself up if you fail to form a discipline.

Also: don’t be afraid to try again, even after a break.

My wife stopped practicing ballet as a teenager because she was told that her age was a cutoff. She picked it back up in her thirties, sans the baggage of expectations. Now she regularly attends adult ballet classes because, yes, it keeps her fit, but also because she loves it.

Try something novel.

A friend of mine is transitioning from online yoga to group classes in 2024. In his mid-fifties, he decided that was going to be his new year gift to himself, especially given how much he already enjoys the practice. 

He asked my advice. I told him to try a lot of instructors. Sure, he might land on someone he loves right away. Understandable. 

But there are first-time horror stories as well. People sometimes turn away as if that singular experience is an omen. 

There are innumerable styles of yoga, with each teacher bringing their own flavor. During my first few years of practicing yoga, I tried everything I could get to. I spent countless hours on subways exploring studios around New York City. I grew to understand what I really enjoyed and what wasn’t for me. 

Whether a new style of movement in a discipline you already practice or something altogether novel, curiosity is one of the great human traits. Exploit it. 

Temper your expectations.

Novelty spikes dopamine. Those first few weeks are magical. 

Then it fades. Levels out. You’re left with a question: is this now a part of my life? 

I loved capoeira until yoga took over. I was just falling in love with Jeet Kune Do when I got cancer, and never returned. 

Always remember that the initial rush is fast and cheap while mastering any exercise or sport is slow and laborious. That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun: I’m currently well below my deadlift PR yet am enjoying the building up process. And if I never hit (or surpass) my PR, I’ll still enjoy the lower weights because I love the movement. 

The challenge of all movement, at least for us non-elite athletes, is finding that balance between pushing yourself enough to maintain motivation and forgiving yourself if the person you imagine never meets the person you are.

When you love the movement, though, that’s never an obstacle to growth.

It’s part of it.

Movement is enough.