A Different Way to Think About New Year’s Resolutions

As we approach a new year, conversations around New Year’s resolutions start popping up everywhere—what we’re going to quit, cut out, restrict, or finally “get under control.” This was the conversation I started having with my husband as we boarded our holiday flight this week.

And while reflection is valuable, I want to offer a slightly different perspective as you think about 2026.

If you choose to make a resolution this year, I believe it can be far more powerful and far more sustainable, to focus on something you want to ADD, rather than something you want to eliminate.

Why Adding > Eliminating

Elimination-based resolutions often come from a place of frustration or self-criticism:

• “I need to stop being inconsistent.”

• “I need to quit sugar.”

• “I need to stop missing workouts.”

These goals aren’t wrong, but they can feel heavy and hard to sustain. When we focus only on what we’re trying to remove, we don’t always give ourselves a clear path forward and personally, this approach has always made me want to rebel! Maybe a personality trait?

Addition-based intentions, on the other hand, are rooted in growth and support:

• Adding movement that feels good

• Adding structure to your week

• Adding moments of care, fuel, or recovery

Instead of asking “What’s wrong with me?”, we ask:
“What would support the version of me I’m becoming?”

The Power of Action-Based Intentions

One of the biggest reasons resolutions fail is that they’re too broad or elusive:

• “Get healthier”

• “Be more consistent”

• “Take better care of myself”

Good intentions—but hard to act on.

For an intention or habit to actually stick, it needs to be:

• Specific

• Actionable

• Repeatable

If you can’t clearly answer “What does this look like on a random Tuesday?”, it’s probably too vague.

How to Create a Habit That Actually Sticks

Here’s a simple framework you can use when setting an intention for 2026:

1. Choose One Thing to ADD

Ask yourself:

• What would make my days feel more supported?

• What’s one small behavior that would positively impact my energy, consistency, or mindset?

Examples:

• Add two strength sessions per week. Figure out what days and times that would be possible.

• Add a 10-minute walk after dinner

• Add 30 grams of protein to breakfast.

• Add a consistent bedtime routine

2. Anchor It to an Existing Routine

Habits stick best when they’re attached to something you already do.

Instead of:
“I’ll stretch more.”

Try:
“After I brush my teeth at night, I’ll stretch for 5 minutes.”

Instead of:
“I’ll move more.”

Try:
“On Mondays and Thursdays, I’ll attend class or complete my workout.”

3. Keep It Intentionally Small

You don’t need a complete life overhaul on January 1st.

Small actions done consistently > big actions done occasionally. One of my clients shared with me that her 2025 resolution was to make her bed every morning. A small task that really had a huge mental impact on her over the year. She was able to stick to this new habit and feels great about her accomplishment!

If it feels almost too easy, you’re probably doing it right.

4. Measure by Follow-Through, Not Perfection

Success isn’t:

• Never missing a workout

• Eating “perfectly”

• Staying motivated all year

Success is:

• Returning after a missed day

• Keeping promises you made to yourself more often than not

• Building trust in your own consistency

A Gentle Reminder as You Enter 2026

You don’t need to become a new person this year.
You don’t need to “fix” yourself.

You might just need to add one supportive habit that makes showing up feel more doable.

At Body By Hannah, we believe progress is built through intentional action, consistency over intensity, and habits that fit into real life—not against it.

If you choose a resolution for 2026, let it be something that adds strength, structure, or care to your life. And remember—you don’t have to do it alone. 💛

Consistently Good

My tennis coach told me recently that it looked like one of my biggest hurdles I needed to get over is not letting one bad shot ruin the next 5-10 minutes of my game. The inability to leave the mistake behind and stay present in the now, is costing me the match. Why in the world should I expect to be perfect in every moment of every game. That’s unrealistic, right? In the two-plus decades of his professional career, tennis legend, Roger Federer won nearly 80% of his matches. But when broken down by point by point, his percentage of wins drops down to 54%. One of the greatest tennis players in history won barely more than half of the points he played. It appears that being consistently good can be a roadmap for success.

Consistently good vs. perfect

Do we expect too much from ourselves? When we aren’t perfect, is it too easy to throw in the towel and give up? Do we believe that we can actually achieve great things simply by being consistently good?! No one wants to be mediocre at something, but maybe being mediocre over time is actually the best thing for us.

Achieving any goal will require facing challenges, having setbacks, and moments of self-doubt. It’s unrealistic to expect perfection every single day. Learning to be consistently good is the most effective strategy for ultimately reaching your goals.

Why consistently good is a better strategy for reaching our goals:

1. Reduces Pressure: Striving for perfection can create immense pressure and stress. By aiming to be consistently good, you allow yourself room to grow and make mistakes without feeling like a failure.

2. Builds Sustainable Habits: Perfection is often unsustainable, leading to burnout. Consistency fosters habits that are realistic and maintainable over the long term.

3. Encourages Progress Over Perfection: Small, regular improvements accumulate over time, leading to significant progress. Consistently good efforts compound into success more reliably than sporadic attempts at perfection.

4. Increases Enjoyment: When the pressure to be perfect is removed, the process becomes more enjoyable. This enjoyment can motivate you to stick with your habits and goals.

5. Promotes Learning and Adaptation: Mistakes and imperfections are valuable learning opportunities. Consistent effort allows you to adapt and improve, while perfectionism often leads to stagnation.

So how do we establish consistency:

1. Set Realistic Goals: Break your larger goal into smaller, achievable tasks. This makes it easier to maintain consistency and measure progress without the burden of perfection.

2. Be Flexible!: Develop a daily or weekly schedule that incorporates time for working on your goal. A flexible routine helps you adapt to life's unpredictabilities while staying consistent. You may need to modify the task or pivot and do something different.

3. Use Reminders and Tools: Utilize calendars, apps, or alarms to remind you of your tasks. Tools like habit trackers can help visualize your progress and keep you motivated. This is what we love about our BBH Fit Coaching App!

4. Stay Accountable: Share your goals with friends, family, or a mentor. Our BBH clients know better than anyone that their weekly training sessions with their trainers help them best stay accountable and provide much needed encouragement.

5. Start Small and Grow: Begin with small, achievable tasks to build momentum. Gradually increase the difficulty or time commitment as you become more consistent.

6. Celebrate Small Wins: Recognize and celebrate your progress, no matter how minor. This positive reinforcement encourages continued effort and consistency.

Takeaway:

Embrace imperfection. Accept that mistakes are part of the journey. Notice them. and have a plan for moving forward. Consistently good rather than perfect is a mindset that reduces pressure, builds sustainable habits, and fosters progress. By establishing consistently good habits and following through with the next steps, you can reach your goals and even surpass them. Embrace the power of consistent goodness, and watch as it propels you toward success in every endeavor.

The Compulsive Entrepreneur

My self-employed dad operated his own publishing company, Friends Publishers. The Pamlico Scoop was his self-published human interest newspaper that circulated across eastern NC. Selling advertisements to pay for publishing and himself, he seemingly made just enough money to scrounge by and rarely had a little extra to spare. Dad’s self employed status gave him a flexible schedule which was good because he was also the only parent who drove. My mom refused to drive so it meant that my dad was the only chauffeur to seven other family members. His schedule became a bit more restricted around monthly deadlines. He would lock himself in his office, ask not to be bothered, and crank out the design, layout, and everything else it took to publish the next edition. He’d then send the pages off to the printer and spent the week post-print making drops at grocery stores, gas stations and businesses from Elizabeth City on down to New Bern.

Although a pauper entrepreneur, my dad’s entrepreneurial lifestyle obviously made its’ impact. The apple wouldn’t fall far from the tree. Over time, I would discover that I was a compulsive entrepreneur. 

At 12, I wasn’t old enough yet to get a job so I needed to figure out a way to make money if I wanted to buy new clothes or go on field trips with my friends. Earning an allowance from my parents wasn’t an option. A lemonade stand became my very first business venture.

My childhood home stood on one of the busiest street corners in little Washington. It was prime location to set up shop with the best lemonade stand in town. My sisters and I promoted the stand with plenty of signs and word of mouth. We were excited to make a couple hundred dollars that summer selling lemonade in two different sizes and then expanding our offerings from just lemonade to a few baked goods as well. When summer ended, I traded in that business venture for one I could work year round. I cleaned houses and babysat and when I was finally legal working age, I got a job at my best friend's family’s dry cleaners. 

Fast forward to adulthood. I created three business all before turning 27- Broadway Babysitters Inc, a babysitting agency, Body By Hannah, LLC, my personal training business and Gotham Versatile Training Inc., a community of independent trainers and trainees and fitness facility management. All three businesses were successes.

I’ve described my entrepreneurial style as “jump into the deep end and figure out how to stay afloat”. And that’s still true to some extent. But, If I could go back, I wouldn't do things the same way. Although I learned by doing, I could have saved myself a lot of headache and heartache by seeking out mentors, finding the right resources earlier on, and hiring help I should have hired. 

The entrepreneurship blog series ahead will explore some of the lessons I’ve learned along the way and share the struggles I still face as a business owner. The successes, the failures, and the jaw dropping stories in between will hopefully help other entrepreneurs find their way a little bit easier and find incredible success of their own. 

If you’re thinking about starting a business or have started a small business and wish to grow, subscribe here to get exclusive content I’ll be sharing only to those interested! I’m not trying to spam those totally uninterested in this topic!

The story behind my first business, Broadway Babysitters Inc., coming soon!!……

(Un) Faithful: Good Grief

I was working to accept the life I thought was real, wasn’t real. 

Desperately trying to make sense out of my husband’s betrayal, I needed to understand how it was possible that he actually loved me AND could do this to us.

The women I considered friends that had also deceived and betrayed me haunted me. 

How could I accept my new reality? I was married to a self proclaimed sex addict and his recovery program would now be a part of our life. 

Conflicting emotions hijacked my thoughts and ran in a loop. I couldn’t get them to stop. 

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Read the first part of the story HERE

Read the second entry HERE

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Lamentation: the passionate expression of grief or sorrow; weeping. 

In college, I was in a stage production of Euripides Greek tragedy, The Trojan Women. I was one of the four women in the play who lamented over the corpse of Hector throughout the entire play. All I actually remember from rehearsing and the production is that I softly sobbed, wailed, or whimpered for two hours straight and that lamenting was completely exhausting. This was the first time I experienced how rehearsing a theatrical production could affect your real life. The emotional toll of even pretending to lament took on my soul was very real. I became depressed and couldn’t wait for the show to wrap. 

Over the next couple of years, it would take me over sporadically- at home in bed, in the shower, during my neighborhood walks or while I was driving down the street. Lamenting forced me to express my grief. It was the kind of weeping that when you let all the air out, your face stays frozen in a tortuous way, trying its best to let out more sound, but it can’t, because you are completely out of air. Automatically you’re forced to gasp in more air only to let it out again in the same desperate sob. 

A Prescription for Sorrow 

STRONG BODY, STRONG MIND

My healthy habits around diet and exercise weren’t a complete match for grief. But, I’m confident it helped to cope with the stress and helped me stay more resilient as I walked through trying to figure it all out. I was addicted to the 20 minute post-workout, very real feeling of “I’m going to be okay/it’s all going to be okay” even though I knew that the feeling would too quickly fade. I did struggle with losing my appetite and lost weight I didn’t have to lose. I was very aware of it, and became intentional about nourishing my body with healthy foods the best I felt I could. My Yoga Teacher Training I was still immersed in was truly a blessing of timing. The patient, thoughtful practice I was learning kept my mind in a more rational and present place MOST of the time. 

Thank Jesus for wine. Not exactly the healthiest way to cope, I took the Proverbs advice to give “wine unto those that be of heavy heart” quite seriously and drank way too much of it most weeks. (Prov. 31:6)

THERAPY 

During the first few months of therapy I mostly listened to the therapist and my husband dig down to discover “the why”. Learning why he sought affirmation from women and used sex to cope, I hoped,  would bring a level of understanding. I hoped creating the simple awareness around “the why” alongside his new transparency would convince me he was now on a new path and we could move forward. As we uncovered and discovered, I was truly heartbroken for my husband and the stories he shared that seemed to be responsible for his own human brokenness. But then there were also therapy sessions where I held back screaming at him, “A lot of people have dealt with a lot more shit in their past than this and turn out to be decent human beings that don’t hurt other people!”  

What I shared with the therapist in our remaining minutes was how stuck I continued to feel. I asked for tools I could use to get past the triggers I’d experience through the week that were holding me hostage. 

“Triggered”. God. Who was I!? I now said things like “triggered”, and asked my husband questions like, “How was your SAA (Sex Addicts Anonymous) meeting?” and celebrated with him how many days sober he claimed. 

We stopped going to church because I was triggered. One of the “other women” sang in the choir there. When we heard she left the church and tried going back, it was all I could do to sit through a service without sobbing through it. After attending a wedding together, I refused to attend another until I knew I was ready. The vows were too painful for me to witness. I was triggered anytime we were around another young girl in a crop top or if anything slightly sexual was in a movie or on tv.  

The trouble of knowing the women your husband had sexual encounters with, is that your brain can paint a VERY clear picture of what probably happened. I couldn’t stop the stories my brain insisted on creating or from putting the pieces of the puzzle together. I had nightmares constantly over the next year and a half. Many included the other women just being present in the dream as I begged them to leave. In more disturbing dreams, I became violent with them. I’d twist their arm and just keep twisting it as hard as I could or I’d pull the hair out of their head, but they would just laugh and carry on like we were best of friends. I tried to commit suicide in one dream. Cutting myself deeper and deeper with a knife, I was frustrated that I could see the blood and feel the pain, but I was still here. So deeply disturbed by this, I shared this dream with the therapist hoping he’d tell me that this was totally normal and that it didn’t mean I REALLY wanted to die.

SELF, LESS

With my job as a personal trainer, coach, and studio manager, I get to pour into others each and every day. The more intentional I am about this, the happier I am. My business and the work involved gave me a place to forget the pain and the struggle for periods throughout the day. I cannot even begin to express how important this aspect of my life was for getting through the grief.

In the two months after my husband's confession, I had put a pause on finding a new building that would help me expand the fitness studio and allow for more growth. But as some of the shock of his revelation started to settle and we were deep into repair mode, I chose to press on. It gave me purpose byond trying to figure out how to repair myself and my marriage. I signed a lease on a new building and over the next year, while my personal life felt like it was falling apart, Body By Hannah grew by 100%, exactly. I found joy in pouring into my clients. I found joy in watching my trainer’s grow. I found joy in witnessing the impact our little fitness studio had in the community. The most powerful prescription for treating grief was “self, less; others, more”.

The Magic of Ibiza 

Just over a year and a half into our battle, I left for the tiny Spanish island, Ibiza, where I was instructing at a fitness retreat. I arrived a week earlier than the retreat I would instruct to attend another retreat on the island. I was eager to have some time by myself and hopefully figure out a way to move forward. I was still feeling completely, embarrassingly stuck. My therapist encouraged me week after week to “get off the fence, and jump in” and I swore that’s what I was doing!  

One of the visualization activities on my retreat was to write a letter to our future self. These letters were to be mailed to us a year from the date we wrote them. In my letter I painted a picture with words of a happy restored married. Our marriage was better than ever. 

In another activity, we were guided through a session of intense breathwork. Breathwork techniques are used to reduce stress, calm your mind, energize your body, bring clarity and inspiration, and allow you to go deeper into yourself. This particular session was very intense. Individual experience with breathwork is unique and varies. You may be moved to emotional tears, laughter, or you may just leave feeling energized.
Halfway through my own practice, I felt my fingers curl like I was clutching something tightly in my hands. As much as I tried, I couldn’t release my fingers. It was uncomfortable and frustrated me as I tried to extend my fingers out to stretch. My throat began to tighten up so intensely that I got scared.  I quit the practice early and laid there with tears streaming down the side of my temples. 

As a group we reflected on our unique experiences. When I shared mine, the instructor asked me if there was something I was having a hard time letting go of and said that it was interesting that my throat chakra seemed to seize up. She asked if there was maybe something I was having a hard time expressing or wasn’t saying that I needed to say?

My week at the camp was emotional and intense. But exploring that tiny magical island was the best therapy I could have asked for. I completely fell in love with Ibiza like I have no other place I’ve ever been. 

When I got back, I explained to our therapist in a one on one session that being away for those two weeks was the happiest and most care free I’ve felt in the past year and a half. He just shrugged and said, “Well that’s because you haven’t had your problem staring you in the face every day.” As our session went on and I explained for the zillionth time that I still felt very stuck with how to move forward in my marriage, he encouraged me to “try something different”. He was aware that up until this point I wouldn’t even let my mind consider the possibility of divorce because I thought it would make healing harder. He wanted me to picture myself in a life without my husband and in our next session we’d reflect. I hesitantly agreed to do this. On the drive home, for the first time in 18 months, I allowed myself to picture what my life would look like without my marriage. Immediately, an overwhelming sense of peace filled my every cell and I was giddy. I had the clarity I had been desperately seeking and it was crystal clear. That night, I told my husband our marriage was over. 

I didn’t know what lay ahead, but I knew what it was time to leave behind. Subconsciously I had kept tabs of the instinctual deception I sensed over the years. I responded by building up a concrete fortress around my heart to protect it and this fortress wasn’t cracking. The damage done was too great. I couldn’t find it in me to trust again the person who vowed to keep me the safest. I still didn’t trust his great self development, the new transparency, or that his recovery journey was genuine. It was time to let go of my fear of losing my person and our family. I needed to let go of my fear of being seen as a failure and the fear of being judged by others. It was time to walk away with peace that God is always faithful- knowing that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

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