IT’S estimated that 80% of people who make New Year’s resolutions will give up by early February. If that sounds annoyingly familiar, keep reading: This article was written for you…

So why does this happen? It’s tempting to think that being overambitious is to blame. Is your resolution to “lose 20 lbs, take up parachuting and learn the oboe” a bit too much? Possibly.

For me, months of “winter eating”, a Christmas where I became sofa-shaped and my growing anxiety about climate breakdown had me starting 2022 on a mission to get fitter, lose weight... and help tackle climate change while I’m at it.

That felt pretty ambitious. But working for a cycling organisation meant I knew an obvious shortcut: If I started cycling to work again, after two years of working mainly from home, I could tick all the boxes in one. So, I dusted off my bike and got ready to take on the world.

How’s it going so far? Well, not great.

You see, the dark mornings, cold weather and the relative comfort of a commute by bus - let’s not get into the state of the traffic for now - has made it difficult to keep going. Perhaps I’ve bitten off more than I can chew?

Behavioural psychologists say the key to keeping up our New Year’s resolutions is forming good habits. According to the eggheads, we should be specific with our goals, start small and piggyback off other habits.

So, I’ve had a rethink. I don’t want to lose any of my resolutions, but I am going to follow the experts’ advice. That’s why my New, New Year’s resolution is to cycle once a week. Just once.

‘Once a week’ is specific – and I’m starting small by deciding that I don’t need to cycle very far: This week I’m going to cycle for ten minutes to meet a friend for coffee.

It would normally take me about 30 minutes to walk to the café. I might have been tempted to hop in the car. Instead, by cycling I won’t burn any fossil fuels and I get active on a journey I would have taken anyway. All in all, it’s pretty painless. Enjoyable even.

And by the time the warmer months come round, I’m sure I’ll be cycling more than once a week. Wish me luck!