Monty Howell Jeff McClaine warms up for his cycling class at the Y.

Yes, it’s that time of year again—the beginning. A chance to start fresh. We make personal promises to improve our lives. Stop smoking. Eat better. Lose weight. Quit worrying. Be kinder.

Making the pledge is easy, seeing it through is often not.

Following a roadmap for the next 12 months and beyond can be bumpy. To help ensure a smoother ride, INstride turned to familiar faces: Inspirational people featured in our magazine since it launched last May. They share their plans for a brighter 2010 and the challenges to getting—and staying there.

Jeff McClaine

August INstride and myINstride.com

What is your New Year’s resolution?

I typically don’t make “resolutions” each year, but I do take the time to evaluate my past year and to set some goals for the coming year. I try to be as specific as possible so I can check it off the list as I go. Just saying you want to lose weight, work out more or eat less is not really a measurable goal. Something quantifiable is much more motivational. Some examples might include improving a 5K time by 30 seconds, losing five pounds by June and another five pounds by December, biking 2000 miles for the year, or anything that can be measured. I recently added swimming to my routine and it has been a big boost to my motivation, but I am still learning. Breathing out of both sides was a goal for last year and I made it. Now I just have to learn those flip turns!

How do you intend to stick with it?

I stay motivated by trying new things and doing them with others. Keeping the routine new and fresh keeps me excited about my workouts. I look forward to a new challenge and trying something that I have not mastered. Bicycling has been a great activity because you can enjoy the outdoors and do it with friends. Another way is to sign up for group exercise classes with friends. Having someone you know in a class makes it much easier to try something new and is a great motivator to get you there every day. The classes also make a nice holiday gift. There’s nothing better than giving the gift of fitness. And I can’t pass up the opportunity to plug the President’s Challenge. We have a great physical activity tracking tool where anyone can register and log their activities. You can select from over 100 different activities. Everything from doing yard work to water skiing to walking the dog will count. You accumulate points in our Presidential Champions program that help you earn Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. Best of all, it’s free!

What will be the biggest challenge?

There are always challenges when it comes to physical activity and fitness. Life does happen, so things like injuries, weather, and work get in the way. But making it a priority in your life is the only way to keep going. I’m not really a morning person, but that’s the best time for me to grab a workout, so that’s when I do it. Being physically active is just a way of life for me and if I don’t do some type of activity each day, I definitely feel different—just ask my wife.

Julie Short, October INstride

What is a resolution that you have kept?

Quit smoking in 2009

How did you maintain your motivation?

My father died as a result of smoking; I helped take care of him, and watched what it had done to him.

How did you overcome the challenges?

Sheer determination with the help of the CVS nicotine patch (my mother calls it “character!”).

Joel Stager, August INstride

What is your New Year’s resolution?

Eat more fish. The evidence that supports fish as being a true positive in terms of low fat and high omega 3 intake is overwhelming. It certainly beats out hot dogs and cheeseburgers, both of which are pretty high on my frequency list.

And... show greater appreciation for my lovely wife. Married guys live longer and better.

How do you intend to stick with it?

Have my resolution published in the local paper so that friends and acquaintances continue to ask me “How are your New Year’s resolutions going?” Not to mention my wife! I suspect she might mention my second resolution to me from time to time.

What will be the biggest challenge?

Fish is expensive. So I’ll have to see about getting a raise. Then, cooking fish can be a bit more complex. My plan is to intermesh this with my second resolution, such that perhaps my wife will help me with my first. I plan to buy her a cook book focused on fish and seafood. Two birds with one stone, huh? Is that a plan or what?

Tatiana Kolovou, November INstride

What is your New Year’s resolution?

I do not set them in January—too much pressure with that date. I prefer mid August which is the academic “new year.” Last year I opted to start regular strength training.

How do you intend to stick with it?

I made myself accountable to someone else, although I have been a personal trainer and trained them as part my previous career, I hired one and schedule regular sessions. There’s something to be said for someone else designing a plan for you—all you have to do is execute it!

What will be the biggest challenge?

Always time, but good planning takes care of that.

Carol Phillips, October INstride

What is your New Year’s resolution?

I don’t really make New Year’s resolutions anymore, although I do think about goals for the year. This next year I hope to spend more time outdoors, especially in the summer; I hope to accomplish some home projects; and I hope to do some travel.

As far as resolutions, my philosophy now is that every day begins a new year, so if I think of some life change I want to make, for example, in exercise or diet or disposition, I think about it a while until I have a workable plan. The plan is the biggest challenge, because if you cannot really fit it into your life, then it is not likely that it will work well. Then I decide on a starting point—could be the next minute or next day or next week—and that is the start of that particular year. This way any day can be a new beginning. If I don’t quite fulfill my plan, well, then so be it. I re-think it and revise it and start again. That way I get a lot of New Year’s celebrations!

STACEY MATAVULI, May INstride

What is your New Year’s resolution?

A resolution isn’t anything different than a goal.

My daily goal is to do my personal best and while that varies from day to day, I get up every morning and try to get my frame of mind in the right mode in order to succeed. I think that people make resolutions without truly setting themselves up for success. To meet the goal, one has to have a plan; a well-thought-out plan with ideas for what to do when various barriers occur or how to respond when situations occur that one hasn’t planned for. In our society today, we are a very reactive people. If we could all take a step back and think before we respond, we could operate from a more proactive stance. Now, believe me when I say, I am not an expert at this. It’s what I strive for, but often don’t achieve it. However, instead of accepting that it cannot be done, I try to refocus on what I need to do to be as proactive as possible to avoid the reactivity. I believe the biggest challenge in succeeding in this or any other resolution is that our society doesn’t set us up for success. Whether the resolution is weight loss, exercising daily or being at peace, we live in a society that promotes weight gain (large portions, convenience and little activity to name a few reasons) and because success is defined by getting the most done or making the most money, achieving success in the U.S. leaves little time for self-care. If we could value the intangible (health, happiness, peace and connectedness) more than the tangible (homes, cars, clothing, money, stuff), I think we’d all end up being happier and healthier. Myself included.

Jo Throckmorton, August INstride

What is your New Year’s resolution?

Initially I was going to reply, “This year, I will not sit in my living room all day in my pajamas, but instead will move my computer into the bedroom.” Then, I thought I might say, “This year I won’t bore my running friends with the same old excuses for not getting in my runs I’ll think of some new ones instead.” But really, I guess what I want is to just do what I need to do so I won’t be making the same New Year’s resolution next year.

How do you intend to stick with it?

I’ve hired a bouncer to drag me out of bed every morning—he used to be the personal body guard for Mr. T, so I’m thinking I’ll do what he says. Really? I’ll do what I’ve done for 11 years now: I’ll keep my daily running journal, I’ll thank my lucky stars with every stride that I have healthy knees and get to experience the sheer ecstasy of being able to run in all four of the incredible seasons in Bloomington—even if I hurt for a little bit afterwards, I’d take that every day of the week and twice on Sunday to the alternatives.

What will be the biggest challenge?

The biggest challenge is keeping my eye on the ball—which is this: Either I get to living or I get to dying. I used to complain, “It’s too cold to run.” Then I came to understand how lucky I am to feel the clean, crisp air of a sunny December day as I make my way through a 3-miler. I’ve stopped complaining about being too tired to run and have made it a point to muster my energy so I can run past every flowering tree in the neighborhood—which is more invigorating than any late afternoon nap. The greatest challenge for me has always been the mental aspect of running. I know I can do it, I just have to be willing, mentally, to take up the challenge. Nothing else is stopping me. When I was a competitive runner in high school and college, I worked hard so I could be ready for every meet. I wanted to win every race. Now, the challenge is keeping my head in the game and not let myself fall into the common trap of thinking running is work; it’s not, it’s a privilege and being lucky enough to run pain-free should be all the motivation I need to give it my best effort—always.

Ann Smith, May INstride

What is your New Year’s Resolution?

I don’t like New Year Resolutions and stopped making them many years ago. Like most people, the resolution evaporated, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. I was left with that feeling of failure. Yuck!

I have instead learned to make resolutions in my life when I want to accomplish something. Instead of a year’s resolution, I prefer ones that are short term. With weight loss or exercise, it can be a daily goal to make it through the day on track. I like weekly goals, like finishing a project, because it feels manageable. If the goal is really big, like increasing my income, I set small goals or resolutions because the huge goal can feel overwhelming. I like to share my resolution with a friend or mentor. That helps me clarify the goal and I feel more accountable. I can also share my accomplishment with someone who is rooting for me. Sometimes I throw resolutions out. I try to be honest with myself—am I avoiding the resolution? If so, why? But maybe it just wasn’t the right goal for me at this time.

I want to feel like a winner so I make resolutions that I can keep—resolutions that really are important to me, are either short term or ones I can break into small parts, with an end in sight.

Jo Throckmorton

Carol Phillips in middle, courtesy photo Her resolutions include enjoying nature and spending time with her parents in South Bend.