We have all made a resolution to get in shape in the New Year at the end of at least one particularly motivated December, whether that involves losing weight, going on a diet, not drinking all of our calories in alcohol or limiting our stress eating. According to Statista, almost half of all New Year’s resolutions in 2018 involved getting fit, making it the second most popular goal behind saving money.

Unfortunately, half the hype around New Year’s resolutions centers on betting how quickly they’ll be broken. According to Forbes, just 8% of people actually follow through on their resolutions.

And in New Orleans, a city best known for its comfort food, maintaining health-related resolutions can be especially difficult. A common joke around campus is that the infamous “Freshman 15” is more like a “Tulane 20” or worse. 

The spring semester proves even more challenging for Tulane students, with the marathon of day-drinking and Uber Eats-ing that is Mardi Gras when the dining hall is closed, the enticing smells of Crawfest and the abundance of food-related festivals throughout the city.

This may explain why WalletHub ranked New Orleans the 37th worst city for maintaining New Year’s resolutions out of 182 United States cities listed. What’s worse, the Big Easy was ranked 32nd lowest for keeping health resolutions, specifically.

In the spirit of staying faithful to fitness-related New Year’s resolutions, what follows is a list of innovative suggestions that are less ambiguous, and therefore perhaps more successful, than simply “going to Reily more.” In addition to getting your body ready for tanning on the quad on that inevitable 80℉ day in February, they’ll get you more involved in Tulane athletics.

Go to a group exercise class at Reily

Sometimes it’s difficult to find the motivation to head to the gym without a friend on the elliptical beside you, and it can get tedious doing the same workout routine every week. Reily offers dozens of group exercise classes that work with every student’s schedule, including cardio, strength and core workouts. In addition, free unlimited free cycling, yoga and pilates classes are offered to Tulane students!

Walk more

The Garden District is extremely walkable, so try strolling to your favorite spots on Oak, Maple and Freret for your next dinner. Spring semester means Friday Fly Days, and the walk through Audubon Park is lovely. Plus, walking to the tents on St. Charles during Mardi Gras is a great workout (even if you have to pee the entire time). 

Do an Outdoor Adventures activity

If you’re not a fan of working out indoors, Campus Recreation offers plenty of trips from hiking to camping to paddleboarding. Confident students can even rent their own gear from the office next to Reily. 

Meal prep

When living off campus, it can be easy to forget to eat or resort to eating junk between classes. Especially during Mardi Gras, where days lack structure, it’s important to plan out healthy meals ahead of time. Additionally, if you know you’re going somewhere where junk food is the only option (even if it’s a Tulane basketball game where free Canes is provided…), make sure to grab a bite before. 

Hopefully these Tulane-specific fitness resolutions will help you break the Breaking-New-Year’s-Resolutions curse and promote a healthy start to 2020. As for the other most popular resolution, saving money, with all the new restaurants popping up near campus, we may be out of luck.