By Dr HARRISON SAMUEL

The Problem Everyone Recognises

Walk into any Lagos gym in early January, and you will find crowds. Visit the market and vegetable sellers; note the surge. By March, the gym is empty, and the extra produce often goes unsold. Many Nigerians know this cycle: bold promises in January and the routine of daily life by February.

The obstacle is how health goals are set, not a lack of discipline. With about one in three adults living with hypertension and diabetes on the rise, how we set health goals now affects families and already stretched health services. Evidence from 2023 to 2025 shows why January plans fail and what simple, affordable changes actually work in real life.

Start With Addition, Not Elimination

A 2023 study of exercise resolutions found that successful participants framed goals as additions rather than prohibitions [1]. Saying “I will walk around the estate after evening prayer” is more actionable than “I will stop being lazy”. Positive, specific actions remove ambiguity and reduce the burden of daily decisions. Clinicians should advise a clear, observable act. For the public, it means choosing one small addition rather than attempting multiple cuts. A plan such as “buy oranges on Mondays and eat one with tea” requires no new daily deliberation and is easier to sustain.

Habits form through repetition in a stable context. A 2024 review confirms that linking a new behaviour to an existing routine accelerates automaticity [2]. Anchor the change to a current habit: after washing, after a commute, after a radio programme.

“Saying ‘I will walk after evening prayer’ beats ‘I will stop being lazy.’ Your brain needs clear instructions, not vague shame.”

Movement That Fits Everyday Life

Not moving enough is one of the biggest causes of heart disease, diabetes and early death, and it's something we can actually fix. Global surveillance in 2024 reported that about 31 per cent of adults do not meet recommended activity guidelines. Health guidelines emphasise that 150 minutes of weekly activity can be accumulated through everyday daily routines, without gym-based exercise [4]. 2024 research found that even modest increases in movement significantly reduce mortality risk [5].

For many Nigerians, work itself provides a substantial basis for activity. Market traders, artisans and farmers cover long distances on foot. The objective is to add a short, deliberate increment: five to fifteen minutes of brisk walking tied to an existing habit. Practical suggestions include walking after evening prayers, choosing stairs where safe, or alighting one bus stop early twice weekly.

At the community level, low-cost measures scale. Faith-based walking groups, short workplace activity breaks, and market-route planning that encourages brisk walking are inclusive options. Local leaders coordinating safe times increase participation.

Make Wake Time the Anchor of Sleep

Sleep advice has long emphasised duration, yet emerging evidence highlights the importance of timing. A large prospective study of more than 60,000 individuals found that irregular sleep timing predicted mortality risk more strongly than hours slept [6]. Regular schedules remained protective even with moderate sleep duration. A fixed wake time stabilises the body clock, supports blood sugar control and contributes to healthy blood pressure. For people exposed to noise, irregular shift work or cramped housing, keeping a steady wake time is often the most practical change. Practical advice includes using a regular alarm, limiting screen time before bed, and maintaining a brief pre-sleep routine. Earplugs (₦500 at any pharmacy) or eye masks can help.

“A fixed wake time beats eight hours of random sleep. Regularity matters more than duration.”

Add Food, Not Restriction

Dietary guidance framed as a restriction often fails because it ignores cost and culture. A 2025 pilot trial of produce prescription programmes showed that providing access to fruits and vegetables improved diet quality and some cardiometabolic markers in food-insecure adults [7]. The lesson is to emphasise what to add rather than what to remove.

Health personnel should ask what one affordable item a household can add this week. The half-plate rule is a practical rule of thumb: aim to have vegetables or legumes occupy half the plate. Simple actions may include adding ugwu or waterleaf to stews, pairing beans with rice, and choosing fruit as a snack.

Seasonal buying reduces cost right now; a small basket of tomatoes costs ₦200 and makes salad for three days. Vendor bundles and community gardens can stretch budgets further.

“Add food, don't ban it. The half-plate rule: vegetables or beans occupy half your plate before adding rice or yams.” Should be incorporated into the meal plan.

SOCIAL CONNECTION IS LIFE.

Social isolation and loneliness are associated with higher mortality. 2023 research of 90 cohort studies with more than 2.2 million participants found a strong link between isolation and premature death [8]. In 2025, the World Health Organization formally recognised social disconnection as a public health risk factor for early mortality [9].

We should ask “Who do you talk to regularly?” as a routine, just as we greet someone. Encourage sharing health goals with a neighbour, a sibling, or a colleague. When you tell people your plan, their questions become accountability. When you walk together, you keep showing up even when motivation dies.

Lessons from National Programmes

Nigeria's recent health sector efforts between 2024 and 2025 demonstrate basic principles that apply to personal goals. The Federal Ministry of Health reduced maternal deaths by 17% in targeted areas using three tools: a clear target, a tracking system, and a monthly review [10,11]. The same method works for personal change: pick one measurable behaviour (e.g., walking 20 minutes thrice weekly), mark it on a calendar, and review it monthly. If it works in government clinics managing thousands of patients, it works in your sitting room.

Schools and workplaces are effective settings to normalise healthy habits. Short movement breaks, gardening projects and nutrition lessons often shape how families live. Employers can help by permitting brief activity breaks and avoiding late rotas. Policies that improve access to seasonal foods and safe walking spaces support individual effort.

Delivering the Advice Simply

Health personnel can use brief motivational interviewing to help set achievable goals. Use implementation intentions: define what will be done, when and where. A practical plan might read, “Walk briskly for 10 minutes at 19:00 on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.” Encourage patients to mark achievements on a calendar.

Programme managers should train primary care teams and community health workers through brief modules and job aids. Monitoring can focus on a few low-burden indicators: the proportion with a written plan, the percentage reporting regular wake times, and the average weekly minutes of activity.

Start immediately. Choose one small, specific change and commit to when and where you will do it this week. Write the plan on a calendar or in a phone note, and tell one person who will check in. Clinics can distribute one-page plans, and community leaders can announce walking times. Small visible steps and social reminders make habits more likely to persist beyond the first month.

The Practical Blueprint

Frame goals as additions, not prohibitions [1]. Attach new behaviours to existing routines [2]. Start absurdly small, five minutes, one vegetable, two streets. Fix a consistent wake time [6]. Apply the half-plate rule [7]. Involve others for accountability [8,9]. Track a straightforward measure and review weekly. Expect interruptions and restart immediately.

The Bottom Line

Grand resolutions produce headlines; small, repeated actions produce results. A short daily walk, an extra serving of vegetables, a consistent wake time and stronger social ties add up. If health personnel, community leaders and households focus on practical steps that fit daily life and measure progress, January promises can become lasting habits by December. Pick one change from this, write when and where you will do it this week, and tell one person today. Happy and Healthy 2026.

References

Dickson JM, Hart A, Fox-Harding C, Huntley CD. Adaptive Goal Processes and Underlying Motives That Sustain Mental Wellbeing and New Year Exercise Resolutions. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023;20(2):901.

Gardner B, Rebar AL, De Wit S, Lally P. What is habit and how can it be used to change real-world behaviour? Narrowing the theory–reality gap. Soc Personal Psychol Compass. 2024;18(6):e12975.

World Health Organization. Physical activity [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; 2024 Jun 26 [cited 2025 Dec 24]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/physical-activity

Gupta R, Vaqar S. National guidelines for physical activity. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan [updated 2023 Aug 17]. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36251845/

Martinez-Gomez D, Luo M, Huang Y, Rodríguez-Artalejo F, Ekelund U, Sotos-Prieto M, Ding D, Lao XQ, Cabanas-Sánchez V. Physical Activity and All-Cause Mortality by Age in 4 Multinational Megacohorts. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(11):e2446802.

Windred DP, Burns AC, Lane JM, Saxena R, Rutter MK, Cain SW, Phillips AJK. Sleep regularity is a stronger predictor of mortality risk than sleep duration: A prospective cohort study. Sleep. 2024;47(1):zsad253.

Chao AM, Paul A, Vaidya N, Ghanta A. A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Produce Prescription Program for Adults With Food Insecurity and Obesity. J Cardiovasc Nurs. 2025;40(4):E182-E187.

Wang F, Gao Y, Han Z, Yu Y, Long Z, Jiang X, Wu Y, Pei B, Cao Y, Ye J, Wang M, Zhao Y. A systematic review and meta-analysis of 90 cohort studies of social isolation, loneliness and mortality. Nat Hum Behav. 2023;7(8):1307-1319.

World Health Organization. Social connection linked to improved health and reduced risk of early death [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; 2025 Jun 30 [cited 2025 Dec 24]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news/item/30-06-2025-social-connection-linked-to-improved-heath-and-reduced-risk-of-early-death

Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. 2025 Joint Annual Review: FG reports major gains in health sector reforms, records 17% drop in maternal deaths [Internet]. Abuja: FMOH; 2025 Nov 12 [cited 2025 Dec 24]. Available from: https://health.gov.ng/2025-joint-annual-review-fg-reports-major-gains-in-health-sector-reforms-records-17-drop-in-maternal-deaths/

Nigeria Health Watch. Nigeria's health sector in 2024: policies, investments, partnerships and milestones [Internet]. Abuja: NHW; 2025 Jan 1 [cited 2025 Dec 24]. Available from: https://articles.nigeriahealthwatch.com/nigerias-health-sector-in-2024-policies-investments-partnerships-and-milestones/

•Dr Harrison Samuel, Chief Medical Officer, is a member of the Association of Resident Doctors, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) chapter.