As January comes to a close, the fever many of us greeted our New Year’s resolutions with has started to fade. Whether your resolve is to lose weight or to drink more water, most resolutions have one thing in common: promoting overall health and wellness.

Creating a goal for the New Year is a positive and worthwhile practice. It gives you something concrete to strive toward and keeps you in check.

The problem occurs when we set goals that are too ambitious — or not ambitious enough.

Luckily, we live in a time where technology makes our daily lives easy. The Internet provides a wealth of knowledge accessible through a simple Google search.

I’ve been active my whole life, but never had any experience with weightlifting until recently.  

As an avid cardio fan, weight rooms had always intimidated me. In addition to intimidation, I created an irrational fear that once I began weightlifting, my muscles would reach body builder proportions instantly. I pictured myself with skin so tan it resembled leather and a moustache sprouting on my upper lip.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

After doing research on how much weight I should start lifting and some basic exercises, I tackled my fear of the weight room. I walked in and felt relieved to see a few girls in the sea of muscular dudes. A few weeks after incorporating weights into my fitness routine, I noticed a difference within myself. I felt stronger and actually began to genuinely enjoy it.

Staying consistent in order to be successful is a daunting task.

With so many resources available through sites like Pinterest and YouTube, it’s easier than ever to research and formulate any health and wellness goal.

Although weight lifting hasn’t replaced my love of cardio, it has opened my eyes to a different type of exercise and eliminated my prejudice. I haven’t even started to grow a moustache.

At least not yet, but it’s only Jan. 23.