New Year's resolutions: Why small routines achieve more than big goals

New year, newhappiness... and often a long list of resolutions. More sport, healthier eating, less stress. Sounds good, right? But the reality is different: After a few weeks, the motivation is gone. What's the reason? It's usually not a lack of willpower, but the fact that we want too much at once.Small routines are the key and that's exactly what we're talking about here.

Nathalie Gleitmann

30.12.2025

in News

Reading time: 4 min

Step-by-step to new routines

The turn of the year often feels like a fresh start. But our list of New Year's resolutions is usually just as long. Exercise more, eat better, stress less, and all that from one day to the next. We look forward to the new year and want to change a lot, and yet many fail after just a few weeks. Many people think that their motivation is waning, but that's not actually the reason. The problem is that we want too much at once!

Because integrating new healthy habits into everyday life takes time, especially if it is to be long-term.

Studies also show this: Routines don't happen overnight. Depending on the habit, it takes weeks to months for a behavior to become truly "automatic". Exactly how long depends on the habit and the person.

My tips for making your New Year's health wishes a success:

Nobody is perfect! The key is not perfection, but consistency.
Small, feasible changes are much more successful in the long term than radical changes. So really start small so that it doesn't feel like a big effort.
Step by step! Instead of turning your whole life upside down, start with one thing. Only when one new habit has become routine should you introduce the next one.

Small things can have a big impact!

Such a mini-habit can be very simple, for example a conscious snack in everyday life: a handful of nuts or dried fruit as a quick source of energy.

This makes it easy to make nuts and dried fruit part of your routine:

Add a handful of nuts or chopped almonds to your muesli or porridge in the morning
Use dried mango or dates as a natural sweetener in a smoothie or as a quick source of energy before exercise
Keep nuts or trail mix handy in your bag for long or stressful days
Enhance salads or bowls with walnuts, cashews or pistachios
Consciously reach for nuts and dried fruit instead of highly processed snacks when feeling low in the afternoon

These small steps require little preparation or willpower, just repetition. At the same time, they can provide healthy fats, plant-based protein and important micronutrients, making them ideal for a balanced start to the new year.

Less pressure, more success

Another key to sustainable New Year's resolutions: realistic expectations. Taking steps backwards is part of the process. A skipped routine is not a failure, but part of the process. The key is to simply carry on the next day and not wait for a new week or month! Because you can change something every day!

Perhaps this is the best resolution for the new year: not to change everything at once, but to find a small, nourishing habit that feels good and stays that way!

So let's officially say goodbye to extreme changes, sacrifice and unrealistic expectations of ourselves!

A healthy routine doesn't happen in a day or even a year, it's completely life-changing. But the great thing is that even a small change that continually takes place in everyday life can make a big difference!

New Year's resolutions: Why small routines achieve more than big goals

Step-by-step to new routines

Small things can have a big impact!

Less pressure, more success

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