59.6% of people have broken their New Year’s Resolution by 11th January

New research released today by Opinion Matters, commissioned by the food services giant Aramark, found that almost 60% of people have broken their New Year’s Resolution by the 11th January. The research, which surveyed over 2,000 people, found that the average New Year’s Resolution lasted less than a day and only 5.6% of people said their resolutions lasted more than 3 months.

According to the research, women have better willpower than men – the average woman’s resolution lasts 40.6 days, compared to the average man’s resolution which lasts 34.4 days. Based on the results of this research, Aramark has launched its 2017 programme ‘Healthy for Life’ that aims to make sticking to healthier resolutions easier.

Speaking at the launch of Healthy for Life, Frank Gleeson, Aramark’s MD & COO for Northern Europe, said – “When these new statistics showed that the majority of people break their New Year’s Resolutions by the second week of January, we decided to launch our Healthy for Life programme to make staying healthy that little bit easier. Healthy for Life encourages people to choose healthy alternatives, which we’ve included in our sites across the UK and Ireland, but more importantly to make healthy changes that are realistic. Resolutions that are unrealistic, like extreme diets, are harder to maintain and upkeep. Instead of trying to commit to a 5k run every day, it’s better to start off with easier milestones, like a 20 minute walk every evening and build up from there. Similarly, instead of eliminating all ‘treat’ foods from your diet, reduce them. By starting with smaller changes, resolutions are easier to keep.”

Aramark’s Company Dietician, Elbha Purcell, has approved each meal under the Eat Well programme, the nutritional plan for Healthy for Life, and has created ‘healthy’ identifiers beside every food counter in Aramark’s 450 sites across Ireland and the UK. The Eat Well programme will identify healthy alternatives at the food displays which will help consumers stick to their New Year’s Resolutions.

“Extreme resolutions are more likely to fail.” Elbha Purcell, Aramark’s Company Dietician, said. “After Christmas it can be quite difficult to maintain a change from overindulgence with chocolates, alcohol and crisps, to a strict diet of salads. Healthy yet comforting foods, like soups, vegetables and high-fibre pulses, can be a good alternative. The key to successfully maintaining resolutions is smaller changes over a longer period of time instead of committing to dramatic changes.”

Keeping a New Year's Resolution can be tough..