Best in threes and other 'magic' formulas for keeping your healthy New Year resolutions

It is December, a month of balance sheets. Administrations, companies... and also each and every one of us. And there is a very common and collective 'must': New Year's resolutions. Let's review them honestly: how many of them have we fulfilled? Probably, if we focus on those that refer to our health, few or almost none. "There is a statistic that says that eight out of ten people fail in the first two weeks when they try to generate new lifestyle habits," says Beatriz Crespo, doctor in Medicine and High Performance. She does not say this to bring us down, but to explain that we are not alone.

- OK, it's usual... but are we as lazy as we say we are?

- Not at all. This happens because of how we've been taught and how habit-building advice has been shared with us - most of it is based on theories from high-performance athletics or medical rehabilitation settings.

In other words, we are in the wrong mindset. We believe that only «great deeds, great challenges" help us to improve, "and in health, it is not like that at all," remarks the author of 'Healthy microhabits'. Let's review again: how many of us this year set out to "do more sport" in general, or to lose X kilos for our best friend's wedding, or to practice mindfulness when we are unable to watch TV without looking at our mobile phone?

All these grandiloquent resolutions are the main stumbling block to achieving them because they go in the wrong direction. "In the field of health, the culture of effort has done us a lot of harm," says the expert, who in the pandemic inspired thousands of people through their social networks to do something when nothing could be done because the world stopped and we stayed locked up at home.

We've been led to believe there's only one path to building habits - one that demands enormous effort, relentless repetition, and a level of consistency that simply doesn't fit with how we actually live today. This approach fundamentally conflicts with modern life: we're accustomed to instant results, we want progress that comes quickly and easily, and we crave immediate feedback. Waiting the 21 days that popular advice claims it takes to form a habit - or the 66 days that research actually suggests - feels impossible. By the time we write down our New Year's resolutions, we're already set up to fail.

We need to change the focus. And there is still time. Not for the objectives of 2025, but to avoid making the same mistakes as in 2026. Crespo gives us three keys to this. And the best thing of all is that we don't need 1 January: we can start right now.

If we change resolutions for micro-habits, the leap is huge. No endless lists for 3, 6 or 12 months. The ideal, as Crespo recommends in his book, "is to choose three" one week to incorporate them into our routine. And when we have done so, go for another three, and then another three.... That is why they should be "small gestures of less than two minutes" and in different areas.

- Why two minutes? - Why two minutes?

- Because more than four does not seem viable to us and one does not seem reliable.

- And with just that much time, are we going to make it a habit?

- "It opens the door to achieving that bigger habit."

Crespo believes that flexibility is the key to success in this. His first recommendation is to adjust what we want to do to how we feel at any given moment. And if today we had proposed to use the stairs and we don't feel like it or we can't, "treat yourself to another healthy microhabit". This is not about rigid patterns.

Every time you accomplish something, celebrate it to create positive reinforcement, advises Crespo. Post-it notes, stickers... anything goes. In the end it's about "accumulating that positive thought of 'I'm taking care of myself', 'I'm prioritising myself', and it generates what I call a shot of flow, which is when everything around you flows, you feel at ease, your body feels in a creative moment...".

There are many healthy microhabits and each of us should choose the ones that appeal to us and fit our lives. But sometimes we don't know how to start. That's why the expert Beatriz Crespo, leaves us nine (from three different areas) to inspire us and take that first step. And remember: this is not about great deeds.

-Breathe in a cyclical manner. This involves inhaling in three seconds and exhaling in six (approximately). "It lowers the heart rate and calms us down."

- Smell that scent that comforts you when you are saturated . "Aromas connect with our emotional brain and helps it to regulate itself".

- "Micro-walk" : Walking clears the mind, but if you don't have time for a good walk, try five minutes.

- Smell the food before you taste it . "Activates the vagus nerve and lowers digestive stress".

- Stop 10 seconds before succumbing to cravings and reflect on why you want it: hunger, boredom, anxiety....

- Use your hands to measure your portion . If you are in doubt about how much to eat, write down the ideal formula: "Two palms of vegetables + one palm of protein + one cooked fistful of carbohydrate".

- Use the stairs . "This alone activates a lot of muscles, improves circulation...". And it's less lazy than walking up them.

- Stand up to look at your mobile phone. This way you get up from your chair each time and "add micro-moments of movement to your day". If you feel lazy, you might even look at your phone less. It's a two-for-one.

-Walk barefoot at home for three to five minutes . "It stimulates the foot muscles, improves balance and reduces body tension".