Did you resolve to make a change this year? Whether your goal was to eat healthier, run a marathon, or finally start meditating, keep those shiny new resolutions and avoid backsliding with these proven strategies from Gretchen Rubin, author of Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits—to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life ($16; amazon.com).

RELATED: If You’re Going to Make One Diet Change in 2018, Make It This One

1. Name it

Aiming to be fitter or healthier is a laudable goal, but what does that mean? "Choose a goal that is concrete and measurable and tied to an actual behavior," says Rubin. Examples: You want to be more active, so you’ll walk your dog every morning in the park. You want to eat better, so you’ll snack on fruit instead of chips.

2. Know yourself

Ask, "What kind of person am I, really?" If you’re not a morning person, don’t resolve to wake up at 5 a.m. to go to the gym before work—that approach is not only unrealistic, it’s going to fail fast. Rubin suggests recalling past successes to clue you in to what will work for you.

RELATED: How to Make Over Your Worst Health Habits

3. Plan for failure

Things are bound to go wrong along the way (you’ll attend a party and be surrounded by to-die-for cupcakes, say). The key is to anticipate those challenges and make an if-then plan, notes Rubin. For instance, tell yourself: "If there are cupcakes at this party, then I’ll take one, relish every bite and walk away."

4. Show yourself some love

"When you feel energized and cared for, it’s easier to resist temptation," says Rubin. So beyond basic self-care, make sure you’re regularly treating yourself in healthy (i.e., not food- or shopping related) ways: Do a crossword puzzle when you drink your coffee, or burn a scented candle.

RELATED: 13 Weight Loss Resolutions You Shouldn't Make

5. Reframe it

People sometimes feel "done" when they achieve their goal, says Rubin. "Don’t think of it as a finish line. Consider it just one milestone out of many," she says. Think about how you can build on your original goal so you have a new target to shoot for—even before you reach the first one. That way, the good-for-you momentum will carry on

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Emily Ricketts had a major weight loss transformation, but she wants her followers to know it didn't come from a place of self-hatred. Just the opposite: Ricketts says that it was learning to love her body that sparked the dramatic change.

In a before-and-after Instagram post, Ricketts explained that there was another difference between the two photos other than weight loss. She wrote that in the earlier photo, she was fueled by hate, while in the recent photo she was motivated by love. "Love gets you up at 6am for that workout not because you’ll feel bad if you don’t but because you’ll feel damn good if you do," she wrote. "Love let’s you enjoy food without guilt. Love doesn’t have a size. It isn’t a number—on the scale, in your jeans. It’s a feeling, a mindset, a motivation. Hate? That gets you nowhere."

RELATED: How to Wake Up Early for a Morning Workout, According to Women Who Do It at 4 A.M.

RELATED: How to Motivate Yourself to Go to the Gym on Cold, Dark Days

In an earlier post, Ricketts revealed that shifting her mindset from aiming to be skinny to aiming to be strong also helped. "The secret? I’ve stopped using food as a reward and exercise as a punishment," she wrote in the caption. "I challenge and cherish my body in equal measures. I work out because it makes me feel GOOD, not because it’ll make me feel BAD if I don’t." (Here are 15 more transformations that will inspire you to start lifting weights.)

As Ricketts' photos suggest, there's often more to a #transformationtuesday post than meets the eye. (Same goes for Anna Victoria's 5-year transformation and Katie Willcox's "freshman 25" photo) Regardless of your weight-loss goals, for anyone looking to get started on a health journey in 2019, Ricketts' advice is solid. Starting from a place of self-love, rather than self-hate, and working out to feel good (rather than torturing yourself with classes you loathe) is always the way to go in our book.

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This article originally appeared on Shape.com

I quit dieting at age 28 after realizing that it made my body image and eating issues worse. But after the birth of my second child—with a decade of solid body acceptance and recovery from binge eating disorder under my belt—I thought I was strong enough to dip my toe into dietland again. 

Wrong. Dieting's focus on weight and food-tracking brought my body troubles and binge eating zooming back, along with even more extra pounds. I’ve put diets in my rearview mirror again, and with New Year's resolution season upon us, I'm glad to say I'm resolving not to go on any weight-loss plan.

If you're tired of starting January 1 by launching a diet and judging yourself by what you do or don't eat and what the bathroom scale says, consider one of these 12 body acceptance resolutions instead. They'll set you up for a healthier, happier 2019.

RELATED: 10 Body Positive Moments of 2018 That Were Major Wins for All Women

Clean up your social media feeds

Before-and-after pictures bragging about drastic weight loss. Celebs flashing their abs while hawking “detox” teas. Fitspo. Some say these types of social-media posts are motivational. But they encourage unhelpful comparisons, body shame, and unhealthy dieting practices in many people. Resolve to unfollow or mute any person or brand that fosters a dieting mentality or makes you feel bad about your body. For healthier attitudes and body diversity, follow yoga star Jessamyn Stanley and supermodel Ashley Graham.

Ignore body-type fashion advice and start wearing what you love

Like most women, you probably have some item of clothing you really want to wear, but you hide it in the back of your closet because fashion advice experts have convinced you it's unflattering for your size or shape. Thing is, if you're in a velvet jumpsuit kind of mood, who cares if your butt looks big—and why is bigger bad, anyway? Who are you dressing for, yourself or some judgmental stylist?

In dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), this is called “acting opposite to shame,” and it can change the way you feel about yourself in an instant. Put on that horizontal-striped turtleneck or clingy sweater dress one morning and give it a try.

Quit forcing yourself to eat what you don’t like

 Yes, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are good for you, and yes, they're part of a balanced plate. But that doesn’t mean you have to stuff your favorite pasta dish full of extra broccoli if it ruins the taste, or you need to pour chia seeds in your smoothie if you don’t actually like them. Eating out of guilt (“I should do this”) increases stress and takes pleasure out of eating, which sets the stage for feelings of rebellion and overeating later on, says Dana Notte, RD, lead dietician at Green Mountain at Fox Run, a wellness and healthy eating retreat in Vermont…