New Year’s resolutions: Popular goals, expert tips, and why many fail to stick

Top New Year's resolutions for 2025

As 2024 comes to an end, many are already thinking about their New Year's resolutions. LiveNOW from FOX host Jeane Franseen spoke to Lisa Miller, consumer strategist on popular resolutions.

If you haven't made your New Year's resolutions, some experts are discussing which are the popular ones and recommending ideas.

Experts say January can be a good time to reflect on self-improvement, but acknowledge it takes work to make resolutions stick.

Studies have shown that up to 70% of people who make New Year’s resolutions abandon those good intentions within months.

Here are some popular resolutions and tips:

Save money

The Fed has cut interest rates three times in 2024, but has signaled a more cautious approach heading into 2025 amid stubborn inflation and worries about it reheating.

The latest report on consumer prices showed that inflation edged slightly higher, to 2.7%, in November.

Worries about the potential for inflation reigniting have been further fueled by tariff threats from incoming President Donald Trump. Companies typically pass along the higher costs from tariffs on goods and raw materials to consumers.

Economy winners and losers as we look to 2025

Chris Markowski with Markowski investments joins LiveNOW's Mike Pache to take a look at the economy and what to expect going forward under a Trump administration.

Experts say many people are focusing on their finances as we head into 2025.

"The number one thing that consumers are saying for New Year's resolutions, not surprising, is to save money," FOX host Jeane Franseen told LiveNOW. "Forty-five percent of Americans have that as their number one goal for next year is to save money, which interestingly, is not necessarily a good thing for the economy as far as spending goes, but it's probably smart."

Think positive, become healthier

Focusing on what the resolution is helping you to accomplish — rather than what you’re being deprived of — can be a powerful way to reframe your thinking, experts said.

"I think people are really focusing on the outcome to be happy," Franseen added.

"The next on the list is what you would say is the kind of the traditional--exercise, eat healthier…try to get some rest," she continued.

FDA updates definition of ‘healthy’ foods

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated their definition of "healthy" foods on Thursday. It’s an update of the agency’s definition originally devised 30 years ago. The move is aimed at helping Americans navigate food labels at the grocery store and make choices that are aligned with federal dietary guidelines — in hopes of reducing rates of diet-related chronic disease, the FDA said. Lisa Moskovitz, a registered dietitian, joined LiveNOW from FOX to discuss.

Make smaller resolutions

Psychologist Lynn Bufka suggests being realistic about any resolutions.

"It’s quite daunting to say that you want to lose 50 pounds and thus, will never eat dessert again," she said. "It might be more helpful to say, you’re only going to have dessert on the weekends and for special occasions."

Behavioral health experts recommend breaking ambitious goals into smaller targets, like swapping at least one snack for fruit and vegetables or getting some exercise for 10 minutes every day. Once you start hitting these smaller goals, the bigger one might not seem so daunting.

Focus on goals

A study of New Year’s resolutions published in 2020 found that people who focus on specific goals are more successful than those simply trying to kick bad habits.

What to expect from housing market in 2025

Corey Burr with Southeby's International Realty joined LiveNOW's Josh Breslow to talk about what to expect with the housing market in the new year.

In a group of more than 1,000 people, scientists found the most popular resolutions involved exercise, weight loss and eating habits. Other resolutions focused on self-improvement, personal finance issues and ways to focus on mental health and reduce stress.

Among the 55% of people who said they’d kept their resolutions after one year, nearly 60% of them had made resolutions involving goals versus 47% of those focused on avoiding certain behaviors.

Should you make a New Year's resolution?

Franseen said data shows younger generations are more into making resolutions for the new year versus older generations, but she also said people shouldn't feel pressured to achieve 2025 goals.

"Obviously, it's a personal choice to say," she explained.

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