OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Fitness goals are a common New Year’s resolution — and a worthwhile ambition — but sticking with it can be a challenge, which is why the second Friday in January has been dubbed Quitter’s Day.
“The new year obviously brings in a plethora of people, everyone from all walks of life,” Kevin Rounkles, a fitness professional at Life Time Lenexa, said.
Emily Warnes is one of his clients. She started her fitness journey two years ago.
“I'm not gonna lie,” Warnes said, “there's a huge chunk of my life where fitness was not a priority, and it was hard to think about getting back into a routine.”
Warnes has four kids, ranging in age from 10 to 22 years old, and she’s a practicing clinical psychologist, so it’s understandable that she was focused more on raising her kids and her career, but now she’s prioritizing her own health more.
“I was just in a place in my life where I'm not getting any younger,” Warnes said. “I've got four kids; I want to live a long time for them, and I hadn't prioritized that part of my health for a good chunk of time and decided that I just need to commit.”
An injury last year derailed her progress, but Warnes has recommitted to achieving her fitness goals in 2025.
“I am really focused on just being the healthiest version of myself at this age,” she said.
Warnes is not alone, but understanding where to start can be tricky.
“Maybe it's the accountability that you need, maybe it's the education that you need, whatever,” Rounkle said. “What we do, we find that and we hone in on that to keep you kind of coming and build a good habit.”
Rounkles, a former Olathe police officer and U.S. Army combat medic, said Life Time doesn’t turn away resolutioners, but they don’t cater to them either.
“It's awesome to see new, fresh faces here trying new things,” he said. “... That being said, when they come in here, we try to get them connected with an onboarding session or a goal-setting session, maybe an intro to Pilates, or anything they have interest in. The idea behind that is to create some sort of interest and accountability with what they're doing.”
Some people enjoy classes, which offer a group of like-minded workout partners to form a sort of team. Other people prefer one-on-one attention from a personal trainer. Rock-climbing, swimming, basketball — there’s no shortage of fitness options, but Rounkles said the key is for clients to find something they enjoy and develop a routine around it.
“It's very easy to take the weekend off then, come Monday, and ‘I'm not going to go to the gym until the following weekend and then the following weekend,” he said. “Before you know it, it's March.”
The accountability she feels toward her sessions with Rounkles and the encouragement he provides help keep Warnes motivated.
“For me, just showing up every day, even if I don't feel 100%, just showing up and doing whatever I can in small chunks makes me feel like I'm doing something and I build on that,” she said. “... I commit to a lot of other parts of my life and my mental health, but my physical health is really a part of my whole health, and it brings everything into balance.”
Rounkles is proud of the progress she’s made and how Warnes has approached getting healthier and stronger.
“It was always, ‘Hey, let's feel good — I want to feel good mentally, I want to feel good physically, and then I want to potentially move on from there.’ Rounkles said. “It was never about, ‘Hey, I want to lose X amount of pounds or I want to look X amount a (certain) way.”
Warnes’ best advice — as someone already walking the fitness path and as a psychologist — for sticking with a new resolution.
“Just being present with every day and not being hard on yourself — showing up every day and doing something small,” she said. “For me, that's being in this gym. I work hard if I'm around other people and if I have somebody kind of making me accountable.
"Then, if I have a day where I'm not working out as hard or I don't run as much or my workout is not as great, just not beating myself up and telling myself it's a failure. Being happy with just the small steps and knowing every day is a new day, it's the long game.”
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KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.
