Every year around this time, New Year's resolutions fall by the wayside as running shoes start gathering dust in the closet. But there is no reason to give up the moment that initial resolve to exercise more starts to wane. There are plenty of ways to make good on those best intentions for a healthier lifestyle. It's all about motivation and accountability.
Whether a person is starting out on an exercise regimen for the first time, or trying to revive a lapsed habit, enlisting the services of a personal trainer is a helpful first step.
"Setting attainable and realistic goals is probably the number one thing. Don't set the bar too high. Once you hit that goal then you're motivated to set another one and it kind of snowballs from there," said Molly Suhadolnik, a personal trainer and owner of CrossFit Instinct.
While exercise is its own reward, most experts agree that having goals is one of the best ways to keep people focused on their workouts and committed over the long haul.
There are different goals depending on an individual's needs and desires. Weight-loss is the most common, but others target speed, endurance or strength. For some, the goal can be to mitigate the negative effects of injuries, diseases such as diabetes, or even aging.
Whatever the initial motivations, Suhadolnik recommends using a combination of goals so if a person plateaus in one area, she can set their sites on something new and attainable. 
At Fit Club, personal trainer Jeff Oseland regularly meets with clients and uses progress tracking and session notes to keep them informed and moving toward their goals.
"We talk about their nutrition, exercise and supplementation and discuss how things are going. Maybe make some changes to their workout," he said.
Oseland has also found that the simplest words of encouragement - a comment made in passing at the gym or a quick note sent through email - can have a remarkable impact on a person's attitude toward working out.
"It makes them feel good about themselves and all of their hard work, and it encourages them to continue," he said.
Having an active support system is another key to achieving long-term dedication. Some people find inspiration by looking to a celebrity or professional athlete, while others find strength amid friends and fellow gym members who are all working toward a healthier self.
"The more you can surround yourself with like-minded people, the more you're going to set yourself up for success. It just makes things a lot easier," Suhadolnik said.
Once working out becomes ingrained into a daily routine, a person's own body will provide the impetus to carry forward.
"You form a habit and then when you miss a day or miss a session then it really, really feels weird. And that helps you stick with it," she said.
The American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise each week. In terms of minutes per day, this doesn't compute to a terribly time-consuming commitment. Yet some people have found that spending much more time, both on exercise and fitness-related activities, works to maintain their interest at a higher level.
Chris Scheufele is one who has gone "all in" when it comes to getting in shape. The IT consultant got serious about biking and running about a year ago. Since then he has completed a Sprint triathlon, a couple of 10Ks and was training for a half marathon until an injury temporarily sidelined him.
When Scheufele isn't training, he's online doing research on biking and running, and reading about other people's experiences. A longtime blogger, he recently started Blog Cycle Run, where he writes about his training and shares links of interest.
"The blog has been a motivational tool to keep up on running and biking. I'm co-authoring it with a buddy. We're two average dudes that like to bike, and begrudging, run," he said.
By immersing himself into fitness culture, exercise isn't just something that Scheufele "does," it's something that he's "into." It's changed his lifestyle. Early Saturday morning rides are more difficult after a Friday night out on the town, so he's largely sacrificed the latter for the former.
Blogging is just one way that technology can help people keep their eye on the fitness prize. Options abound, both as online programs and phone apps, to assist people in achieving their goals.
Fitness Pro, a free iPhone app, allows users to log workouts and suggests different cardio and strength-training exercises to add variety to routines. Lose It is another free app that tracks calories consumed and contains an extensive library of nutrition information for brand-named foods. There's even a social media site for the fitness-inclined.
Daily Mile offers many familiar social media features to interact with others in its community of more than 200,000 users. It can also can be synced to Facebook and Twitter, so that friends on those sites can receive live updates during extended runs or rides. Scheufele uses Daily Mile, but has found that broadcasting his achievements to his more sedentary friends doesn't always serve to motivate.
"People will respond, 'Will you stop putting that stuff up because I feel so fat right now,'" he joked.
And then there is guilt. Suhadolnik and Oseland both said that positive reinforcement breeds the best results, but admit that some people do respond when confronted with the negatives that inevitably occur with prolonged inactivity.
"You might say to them, 'If you want to feel better, you have to do this or there will be consequences if you don't,'" Oseland said.
Tips for success
Photos: Jason Johnson/The State Journal-Register -- Chris Scheufele says he got serious with fitness about a year ago. Since then, he's completed the Capital City Century (a 100-mile bike ride), a Sprint triathlon, a couple of 10K races and is training for a half marathon.
