TWIN FALLS, Idaho — Setting a New Year's resolution is easy. Sticking to it? Not so much.
According to research, only about 9% of Americans actually stick to their New Year's resolution. Despite that sad statistic, every year, improving oneself is often made a priority on January 1st.
WATCH: Twin Falls area residents focus on health, education, and sports goals for the new year
"As Americans, we tend to get busy and lose sight of what's important and those goals we set," Carter Kelsey said.
At the College of Southern Idaho, the Kelsey brothers from Buhl are hitting the ground running on their resolutions. One wants to improve the mind, and the other is chasing the chance to achieve glory.
"I want to read a book a month— a business book a month," Carter Kelsey said.
"My main one is to make it to state basketball, I'm a senior in high school— just work hard and try to get there," McKay Kelsey said.
The most common resolution set in the U.S. focuses on physical health, which is once again at the top of the list for Twin Falls resident Shane Barlow.
"Just stay healthy. At my age, I've got to do the best I can to keep working out," explained Barlow. "I've been working out strong and heavy for about 45 years, so I've stuck with it pretty well. The Army taught me that."
But not everyone sticks to their goals with ease, and many experts urge people to keep their resolutions realistic.
"It can be really tempting to have these big pie-in-the-sky resolutions, and that isn't often tied to success for a lot of people because they might have to shift their behavior so dramatically that these resolutions aren't realistic," cautioned Sean Pyles.
Instead, try setting small goals and adding something new every few months.
"Just don't give up. Endure to the end," added Barlow. "You want to keep coming in and lighten up your weight and keep doing the exercises the best you can," Barlow said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
