Every year, it’s the same.   

Jan. 1: Every elliptical is occupied, the weight room is filled, books are flying off library shelves, kale is suddenly popular and alcohol binges are deemed once and for all a thing of the past. For a few weeks, hopeful Americans believe they can make a change in their lives; become more fit, more healthy, smarter and less lazy. It’s a new year; a whole new chapter of our lives can begin, now.  

Let me tell you a little known secret before you waste your time putting that pen to paper: You won’t do it. 

Come Feb. 1 you’ll be back on your couch, drinking beer, eating potato chips and procrastinating your homework.   

You can’t change. You won’t stop drinking, or start going to the gym, or become a gluten free vegan over night. Humans are averse to change. We like the way things are and would rather not push ourselves, even when we know it’s in our best interest.  

I will continue to binge drink and eat fried foods because going cold turkey on alcohol and French friends doesn’t seem like a viable option. I’m human, and everyone makes mistakes, right? I have the rest of my life to turn things around.   

This might seem like a pessimistic article. I promise, bear with me, I’m going somewhere with this. I'm proposing a better way of doing things.

Jan. 1: Instead of giving yourself big seemingly unattainable goals like losing 10 pounds by Valentine’s Day or learning to speak Chinese, choose small, measurable goals that over time can make a real difference in your life. It takes time for our bodies to adjust to any sort of change, and our minds need real motivation to make our lazy bodies get off the couch.    

By setting smaller, more attainable goals, we trick our minds into believing we can do it, because we actually can. 30 minutes a day at the gym, 10 pages a day of that new book you’ve been meaning to read, 30 minutes practicing the guitar, eat fresh fruit or vegetables — you can do that, right? You can replace 30 minutes of stalking on Facebook or reading these self-help articles online with actually doing something productive. You can.   

This Feb. 1: You will be 300 pages into that new book, have learned a new song on guitar, and have created a habit of going to the gym once a day and eating fresh foods that will turn into real results for your physical fitness.    

Now that’s what I call a New Year’s Resolution.