On December 31st, many people will celebrate the coming of 2019 with the tradition of making a resolution. The most popular resolution always seems to be to lose weight, especially for older Americans, as they strive every year to make the change. New Year’s motivation helps many feel up to the challenge, and this leads many people to be ambitious in their goal setting.

In fitness centers like Gold’s Gym, there was a reported 40% spike in gym memberships in January 2016. Everyone wants to be in better shape, and they think the start of a new year is the perfect time to do it. After all, it makes a positive difference, right?

Reuters, a business and financial report company, states that over a third of people break their resolutions by the end of January, and just over a fifth of them actually see their goals all the way through. Other sources state that this number could actually be as low as 9%. Gyms often count on this activity spike to achieve a sizeable profit.

In the fitness industry, selling more memberships than the gym’s capacity is a common testament to the reliability of the public’s waning athletic motivation. These are some discouraging statistics for those in search of losing a couple pounds, so it leaves many to wonder why this disappointment keeps happening.

The answer to this is actually fairly straightforward: people just tend to be too ambitious in their goal setting. Resolution-makers may start out with a healthy regimen, but it doesn’t take long before they burn out.

“I tried it but I couldn’t follow through,” said one Minnetonka student. “It was just too much.”

Scheduling often plays a prominent role in this issue. Reuters found in a survey that 40% of people blame being too busy for quitting their goals. Vowing to completely change one’s lifestyle is very difficult at a moment’s notice, so these goals often fall through. This serves as key backing for psychologists’ claims that starting today is actually more effective than starting on New Years.

It is best to “make a plan now,” says Dr. Michele Olson, a professor of exercise science. MHS Gym curriculum suggests that many people should follow the SMART goal plan for planning fitness goals. According to the SMART idea, goals should be Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Bound for them to be realistically achieved.

While the coming of a New Year inspires a mindset of bringing about positive change, it can be difficult to follow through on these aspirations. Thoughtful and balanced goal setting can bring about healthy changes.