It’s all too familiar a story: while you’re scoffing your 50^th chocolate of the night and already sensing a bulging waistline, you suddenly resolve to change your ways, just as soon as the season of indulgence is over. However, a resolve to get fit from 1^st January onwards can rapidly dissipate amid a wide range of excuses.

So, what can you do to ensure that you really can keep up with your fitness resolutions? Here, we give you advice on everything from combating those common excuses to the value of vitamin B6.

Don’t self-sabotage your fitness campaign!

All too often, we make flimsy excuses for our failure to get a proper exercise regime underway. Perhaps you’ve reasoned with yourself that you’re too old to get fit, or maybe you think you’re inherently unmotivated.

Well, there are various ways in which we can explode those myths. On the subject of motivation, for example, there’s no reason why any single human being should be unable to motivate themselves… but you really do need to keep your eye on the end result and show yourself how much you want it.

As for the “getting old” excuse, it’s never too late to get fit and in the process, significantly reduce your risk of all manner of health conditions. Who knows how many years you could end up adding to your life? These are just a few of the common means of self-sabotage that need to be challenged.

Keep motivated by bringing someone with you

It’s easy to be intimidated by the thought of trying to get fit, if you feel like the lone fat man surrounded by regular gym visitors with the kind of toned midriffs that even Jessica Ennis would envy. So, why not make regular dates with a friend so that you also have the motivation to avoid letting anybody down?

You can also better motivate yourself to fulfill your New Year fitness resolutions by breaking the process into smaller chunks, perhaps aiming for simple, but regular aerobic exercise before moving onto something more challenging.

Are you taking the right vitamins and supplements?

There are so many vitamins and supplements on the market that can assist you to achieve your fitness goals in the New Year, but of course, it pays to research carefully to ensure that they make sense as part of your wider diet. Vitamin B6, for example, is often taken to increase energy, which is so vital for so many people who are serious about exercise.