It is no secret that January is the busiest month for gyms and fitness centers. November and December being the least busy. That most likely being because of the “holiday season” and the thought that “I’ll start again in the New Year”.
If your 2026 resolution is to get in shape and live healthier, then starting small in late 2025 will actually increase your chances of success in the New Year.
Notice, I said starting “small”.
You do not need to totally change the way that you are doing everything. You don’t need to avoid all of the holiday excitement and festivities or try to starve yourself leading up to them. That is completely unrealistic during the busiest time of the year. But starting to work towards consistency of a couple of new (or maybe not new, but lagging) habits- 3 in particular, will set you up for more successful fat loss in 2026.
Those 3 habits?
- Prioritizing protein and fiber, daily
- Strength train
- Walk
Let’s dig into each of them, and how they are going to support your fat loss journey.
-PROTEIN and FIBER-
Let’s start with protein. The building block of every cell in the body and a major player in muscle building and as a result, your metabolism.
Every single process and structure in your body requires protein of some sort and in some way. Your body cannot produce its own protein in sufficient amounts to support all of these bodily systems/structures. Making dietary protein intake essential. In order for your body to operate not just efficiently, but optimally, you should eat anywhere from 0.8-1.2g/lb of ideal body weight, each day. This takes some effort, intentionality and prioritization.
So what does “prioritizing protein” look like?
Think about it, if your ideal body weight is 150lbs, you would want to eat anywhere from 120g-180g protein daily. Breaking that up into a typical 3 meal day would mean you are aiming to eat between 40-60g protein at each meal. If you have been tracking your food intake for some time, you know… this does not accidentally happen. It takes planning.
If you are new to prioritizing protein… don’t be intimidated. It is completely do-able and isn’t going to happen overnight. You can go ahead and give yourself some grace in that department.
Stressing about the numbers right now is NOT what you need to be doing, especially if you haven’t been tracking up to this point.
Prioritizing protein can look a couple of different ways.
It can mean that when you sit down at each meal, a protein source takes up at least ⅓ of your plate.
It can also mean you eat that protein source first, then eat your starch and healthy fats afterwards.
It can mean when you’re hungry for a snack you grab a beef stick and some fruit, or a greek yogurt bowl instead of a granola bar.
Then there is Fiber. A major player in efficiency of tons of bodily functions as well. Most commonly known for digestive help/aid, but also blood sugar regulation and along with protein it helps signal satiety and feeling full.
Ideally, women get AT LEAST 25g fiber daily, and 35g/day for men.
Prioritizing fiber looks like including fibrous whole foods at each meal. Things like leafy greens, broccoli, sweet potatoes, whole grains, beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, avocado, berries, apples and bananas.
So why and how are either of these things going to support your fat loss in the future?
Both protein and fiber not only help your body to operate optimally, and therefore allow it to worry less about being in a caloric deficit (resulting in fat loss) but they also require more digestion, meaning you are going to feel full, for longer. When you are in a caloric deficit, feeling hungry is a natural part of that. Eating foods that “stick” a little bit longer help make a big difference in whether or not that “hunger” of the caloric deficit is miserable or manageable.
Working on improving your ability to consistently prioritize these foods NOW will be one less thing you need to worry about when you enter the “fat loss phase” come January 1. It will be old hat, and your body will be in a much better place going into the deficit.
– STRENGTH TRAINING –
You heard me… build some muscle.
A lot of the time, I get people saying “I’ve lost weight successfully in the past by walking/running/circuit training/hiit/fill in the blank”. And yes. I completely agree and totally believe them.
There’s just one thing… and it can kind of be a hard truth to accept. But that weight loss you made last time?
It wasn’t as “successful” as you think.
If it was, you wouldn’t be trying to lose that same 10-15lbs again, and again, and again.
This is where strength training makes a big difference. Not only does it make you stronger and more agile for activities of daily life. But it helps improve your metabolism. It “costs” your body a lot more to feed muscle tissue than it does fat tissue. Building more muscle means your body burns more calories just to exist.
Improving your metabolism through resistance training now (a couple of months leading up to your “weight loss resolution”) is going to put your body in an amazing place come January 1. Because your body requires more calories to exist, once you enter a caloric deficit (the only way fat loss truly happens) you’ll be able to lose weight at a higher caloric intake than you would have been able to had you NOT put in the work to build muscle.
And let’s all be honest and say, who doesn’t want to lose weight eating MORE rather than less? Because in all reality, none of us get to a point of needing/wanting to lose a few pounds because we like eating less. It’s just not how the body works.
It’s because of this, that the whole “more cardio for weight loss” is at fault.
The wonderful thing about cardio is that the more of it you do, the better at it you get. The better your body is at conserving energy while you expend it. Which is the opposite of what you want for weight loss.
God created the body to be an absolutely amazing machine. And it will do whatever it needs to to keep itself “safe and healthy”. So the more running/cardio you do, the better your body gets at pairing down “energy expensive” tissue- like muscle, instead of fat. And that is not the kind of weight loss you’re after.
Muscle also takes up less space than fat. Meaning, one pound of muscle looks A LOT different than one pound of fat. To which I commonly get the response “I don’t really care about building muscle. I don’t want to look bulky, I just want to look toned”.
Trust me on this- the look you’re going for? Is going to take some muscle building.
Looking “toned” in its most literal definition means “to be able to see muscle definition.” And don’t worry. It takes years and years of super intentional training and nutrition to get “bulky” muscles.
Building muscle = Win. Win. Win.
-Walking-
Walking has to be THE most underrated form of exercise out there. Everyone thinks that if they need to lose weight they need to run and run and run some more.
Which, if you love running, all the power to you. But most people I know don’t actually love running.
You can gain amazing cardiovascular fitness improvements and benefits from just walking. Walking outside, walking on the treadmill, walking hills, walking with a weighted vest. Any of it and all of it.
Why is walking so underrated?
It is relatively low impact and nearly everyone can do it. If you can, you do it every day in some form or capacity. You don’t have to learn the “skill” of walking. You just have to get out and do it.
It doesn’t require any equipment. Don’t have a treadmill? Get outside. It’s cold out? Put on a hat and mittens and get after it. Or walk the hallways in your apartment or house. No excuses.
The health benefits you can get from 30 minutes of walking/day are undeniable and should not be overlooked. Your heart and lungs will get stronger, your bones will get stronger. Your mind will be clearer, and your mood improved. You’re risk of disease is also significantly lowered.
Feel a bit overwhelmed with the other 2 habits we’ve talked about? Start here.
Walk. Every single day.
Move. And you will want to move more. I promise.
January 1st is a month and a half away.
So building momentum in the “holiday season” and beating the New Year’s rush in January gives you over a month head start to build routine, confidence and reduce any gym anxiety- or any anxiety for that matter.
Having some sense of routine or habit stacking in during the holidays can actually offer your body and mind relief from the holiday chaos.
Movement is medicine and you should never take a break from it, to “start again in the new year”.
You don’t have to spend hours in the gym and miss out on family or friends because you have to get your workout in. But you do have to keep working towards bettering your health. That is quite literally the best gift you can give yourself and your family this holiday season.
Plus, it’s going to set you up to crush your 2026 New Year’s Resolution in January AND avoid the burnout that comes in February.