We are just past two weeks into January, and there are two kinds of people: the ones pretending they’re “crushing it,” and the ones staring into the fridge like it’s a therapist.
I’ve been both.
So today I thought I'd share a behind-the-scenes conversation with my co-host Jason Kidman from Inside Omega—where we unpack why New Year’s resolutions fail so reliably, and what that failure is actually trying to tell you. (Spoiler: your nervous system is not impressed by your color-coded plan if you’re running on stress, poor sleep, and self-criticism.)
We talk about what does help—simple structure, foundational regulation, and yes, the reality of weight-loss tools people are using right now. But the through-line is mine: if you want change that sticks, your body has to feel safe enough to follow through.
“Two weeks in,” Jason says, “what’s everybody thinking about right now?”
I answer: their resolutions probably failed flat!
Before anyone clutches their vision board—this isn’t moral failure. It’s biology.
A stat that keeps floating around (and honestly tracks with lived experience): only about 9% of people who make New Year’s resolutions actually achieve them, with 23% quitting in the first week and 43% by the end of January. (Fisher College of Business) So if you’re reading this with a half-used planner and a fully-used nervous system… congratulations, you are extremely normal.
I also found this: the Washington Post’s early January 2026 poll found nearly half of adults make resolutions, and the most common goals are physical health and mental well-being—which tells you everything about how everyone’s doing right now.
This Substack piece is built from a real conversation between my co-host, Jason Kidmad (peptide educator, founder of Omega Longevity) and me, Lane Kennedy (3×4 Genetics practitioner, Stress Managment Consultant, and long-time meditation teacher who is painfully aware that nervous systems don’t respond well to being yelled at).
We talk about weight loss and peptides. But the headline is this:
Most “failed resolutions” are just untrained stress responses wearing a cute outfit.
Where resolutions go wrong…
Jason asks me, sincerely, like a man tossing a match into a fireworks factory:
“Where do New Year’s resolutions go wrong and what’s wrong with them?”
Here’s the problem: we use January 1st like a courtroom.
We put ourselves on trial: new year, new body, new personality, new career, new life, no mistakes. That’s not motivation—that’s pressure. Pressure spikes stress. Stress breaks consistency. Consistency is the only thing that works.
I told Jason:
We confuse “self-improvement” with “self-rejection.”
We aim for outcomes without building capacity.
We treat our nervous system like it’s a machine, not a living animal.
Jason’s take is cleaner (and honestly, more business-brained):
“I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions. I believe in planning and goal setting for the first quarter.”
Quarterly thinking is nervous-system-friendly because it’s specific, time-bound, and adjustable. Resolutions are often vague, emotional, and punishing.
Translation: goals work when they’re structured. Resolutions fail when they’re performative.
The “personal day” that high performers quietly swear by
In our conversation, Jason mentioned something I’ve seen repeatedly with high-performing clients:
People who are actually effective at change step away to think. No constant inputs. No dopamine pinball machine. Just reflection.
He described leaders who take two or three days at year’s end—sometimes with no phone service—to look at last year’s goals, decide what matters now, and create a plan.
Do you need a cabin in the woods? No.
But you do need some version of this:
The 60-minute Reset (a realistic alternative to a cabin)
Leave your phone in another room (yes, it will survive).
Take a notebook outside.
Answer three questions:
What is costing me the most energy right now?
What would “health” look like in 90 days if it didn’t require perfection?
What is one daily habit that would make everything easier?
If your brain goes blank, that’s not laziness—that’s dysregulation. Start with the body first: drink water, eat something, breathe slower than your thoughts, then come back.
Why I keep talking about getting outside (especially when you feel “stuck”)
Jason asked:
“What is it about getting outside that’s so good and healthy?”
Here’s my honest answer: when you’ve been sick—or scared your body will betray you—indoors can start to feel like a trap.
I’ve been dealing with dysautonomia, which is essentially autonomic nervous system dysregulation—the system that runs heart rate, digestion, temperature, blood pressure, and the background “settings” you don’t consciously control. When it’s dysregulated, you can feel like your body is freelancing. (Not in a cute entrepreneur way.)
So getting outside does a few important things:
Light to the eyes helps anchor your circadian rhythm.
Movement + air + open space cues “not trapped.”
Nature tends to downshift the stress response (not magically—physiologically).
And honestly? The ocean helps. The nervous system likes big, steady rhythms.
Weight loss talk, without losing the plot
At some point Jason says the thing that actually matters:
“Let’s address foundational things first.”
Because here’s the uncomfortable truth:
Weight loss strategies don’t work well in a stressed body.
If your system is chronically stressed:
hunger cues get weird,
cravings get VERY loud,
sleep becomes fragile,
inflammation goes up,
recovery goes down.
Inside this conversation, we talk about GLP-1 medications and peptide protocols (because people are asking, and the market is exploding). But nervous-system regulation is the container—without it, people end up swinging between extremes.
Jason and I touched on a common issue: people get placed on GLP-1s with little to no lifestyle guidance (protein targets, strength training, gut support, etc.). That’s not just a missed opportunity—it can become a side-effect factory.
And while I’m not here to do medical fear-mongering, it’s worth saying out loud:
Some people experience significant GI side effects on GLP-1 drugs (including severe constipation and slowed gastric emptying).
Some people lose weight quickly without maintaining lean mass, which can backfire metabolically, and I've seen happen to countless women!
Retatrutide (an investigational “triple agonist”) has shown very large weight-loss results in trials—depending on dose and study design, numbers near the high 20% range have been reported. That’s significant—and it’s exactly why the “how” matters. Big results without a foundation can create a rebound story later.
Not medical advice. If you’re using (or considering) GLP-1 medications or peptides, do it with a qualified clinician, and don’t treat an Instagram influencer as your wellness practitioner or endocrinologist.
The moment we nearly turned the podcast into a dosing tutorial (and hit the brakes)
There’s a part of the conversation where Jason starts getting very specific about dosing schedules.
And I stop him. Hard.
Because:
It’s not responsible for a public episode.
People will copy/paste it onto their body.
Nobody needs “negligence” as their New Year’s resolution.
So here’s what I will say, because it’s the useful part:
What “doing it right” usually looks like (conceptually)
Start conservatively (not aggressively).
Prioritize protein and strength training to protect lean mass.
Support digestion proactively.
Track sleep, mood, and recovery, not just the scale.
Avoid the “more is better” spiral that leads to tolerance, side effects, and burnout.
That last one matters in stress management and weight loss:
More pressure rarely creates more progress. It creates more collapse.
The Self-Love Reframe (for people who hate that phrase)
Jason teased me (lovingly) about being the “self-love” person.
Yet, here’s the blunt version:
Self-love is not bubble baths. It’s truthful pacing.
It’s choosing a plan your nervous system can actually execute.
So if you want a real “Inside Omega” style goal for the year, try this:
The only resolution I actually trust:
I will build a body that can follow through.
That means:
fewer dramatic declarations,
more realistic structure,
more regulation,
more reps.
A simple 3-part plan for the next 14 days
If you’re already off track, good. Now we can do something real.
Pick one anchor habit (sleep window, morning light, protein at breakfast, 10-minute walk, 3-minute breathing practice).
Tie it to an existing routine (coffee → light, brushing teeth → breathing, lunch → walk).
Track consistency, not intensity (you’re training follow-through, not punishment).
If you want to make it extra science-y: measure your “stress cost.”
If the habit makes you feel worse or more frantic, it’s not a habit—it’s a threat cue.
What's Next.
Jason ended with something I agree with:
People see commercials, hear success stories, hear horror stories, and get confused. “Where do I start?”
You start here:
Foundation first. The nervous system first. Then the tools.
Whether your tools are walking shoes, journaling, protein, therapy, sunlight, peptides, medication—whatever—the order matters.
Because your biology isn’t lazy.
It’s just responding to the inputs you’ve been living in.
And if you’re two weeks into the year and feel behind…
Welcome to the human experience. Let’s do the next right thing—calmly.
Incredibly well written Lane!!! Happy Friday! :)