CORALVILLE, Iowa (KCRG) – As Eastern Iowa rings in 2026, many are kicking off their New Year’s resolutions, and those goals often center around physical health. But experts say the mental part is just as important as the physical part.
Megan Timmins, an owner at The Gym in Coralville, said the hardest part of starting a fitness goal can be walking through the door.
“Just making a decision that you are going to try and make a change. And then the most important thing is going to be consistency,” Timmins said.
Timmins said while change can be hard, once you get that consistency, you’ll start seeing results.
“You realize that you start to feel quite a bit better. You sleep better. Your eating is a little more consistent. You can trust your body when you’re doing daily functional activities and let that kind of lead into being able to get into the gym a little bit more often and therefore find the motivation,” she said.
Stacey Pawlak, a clinical psychologist at UIHC, said your mental health can play a big part in helping you meet your physical health goals.
“Part of the problem, I think that people have with making any behavioral changes, one, not realistic about the goals. Two, not specific about what those goals are going to be. And then three, not flexible at all about those things,” Pawlak said.
She said that flexibility can look different for everyone.
“Think about your own strengths, your own abilities. So, for example, if you’re an introvert, planning to go to the gym may not be the best way to achieve your goal,” she said. “Use all the strategies that you’ve already used for other goals in your life for the next goals that are coming up.”
While many people may be intimidated to start that fitness goal, Timmins emphasized the importance of taking that first step.
“Everybody is coming in on their own journey. There’s zero judgment. Everybody’s just working on themselves, and they’re concerned about what movements they’re doing and what equipment they’re using. So come in and just worry about your journey. Everybody is just going to be really proud that you walk in the door,” she said.
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