Should you get a “dog” if you want to get fit?

The start of the new year, as always, but perhaps with normality on the horizon, saw many of us make promises to ourselves. New. Year. Resolutions.

You might not know it, but the promises we make on 31 December for 1 January (okay, let’s be honest, 2 January or even 1 February) are linked to a behavioural science concept known as the #freshstart effect. Fresh start effect, according to behavioural science experts, refers to the human tendency to take action towards a goal following key milestones such as a birthday or new year – like NYRs.??

A common thread for most resolutions is a desire by many of us to start afresh and adopt behaviours that move us towards our goals – with healthy lifestyle behaviours being the most common goal. We all know the importance and benefits of a healthy lifestyle and the pandemic has brought that to the fore… but we also know from published data?that most of us do not maintain our resolutions for a month into the year!

How can we make habit stick?

#Goalsetting is an effective behaviour change technique that increases the likelihood of goal attainment. There are however many of us who, despite setting goals, struggle to put those goals into actions. This is where action planning (or implementation planning) proves helpful to help translate our goals into action. A simple example is scheduling a parkrun on the weekend, making sure any other to-dos are in place.?

Another strategy to drive behaviour change is to focus on a “one-time action” that will trigger the desired behaviour change. In one of her talks as part of the Behavioral Design for Health course, Kristen Berman from Irrational Labs shared a fascinating example of how a one-time action, like getting a dog, can help one get into the habit of daily walking or jogging – thus helping initiate and maintain the desired behaviour. I applied this concept at home to get my boys off the couch and walking daily during COVID-19 lockdown. The walking stuck. The boys walk the dogs at least once a day.

Now, I’m not saying you must get a dog…

Many of us are motivated to set goals. However, setting a goal in itself is not enough to achieve behaviour change. Pets are not for everyone, and do not address all healthy lifestyle behaviours such as healthy eating, mindfulness, screening and prevention.

But, if the freshstart effect has motivated you to set lofty goals; and you need motivation to sustain the behaviours required to achieve the goal, then think about drafting an implementation plan to get you going. Alternatively, you can join over a million South Africans who took the one-time action and signed up to Vitality’s wellness programme – to help you initiate and sustain your health, money and driving goals. The Vitality programme also leverages the #freshstart effect - Vitality points reset at the beginning of each year for this very reason.

Behavioural insights can help to motivate people and importantly, sustain good health behaviours, safer driving and good financial behaviour. The proof is in the pudding, or smoothie perhaps. Healthier, happier, longer lives that are in my care. This year, that is my resolution. To make as many people as I can a little bit healthier. If you have made a resolution to prioritise your wellbeing – I encourage you to decide what your “dog” will be to get you moving and to #LiveLifewithVitality