38 Before-And-After Transformations That Might Leave You Speechless

This trend has come just in time to motivate everyone to commit to their New Year's resolutions. According to a new poll, saving money, exercising more, and getting healthier are Americans' top choices heading into 2026.

Of the 2,000 surveyed, only a small group (10%) felt very good about 2025 as a whole, calling it a “great” year, while most were less positive: “just okay” (39%), “bad” (19%), or “awful” (10%).

So to turn things around in the coming year, many (38%) are setting personal resolutions, with Millennials being the most likely to do so (57%) and Baby Boomers the least likely (23%).

Men are also more likely than women to set resolutions for 2026 (44% vs. 35%) and report feeling more motivated to complete them (93% vs. 85%).

More specifically, the survey found that, on average, people are creating six resolutions for the upcoming year. The most common are putting more money into savings (45%), exercising more (45%), and improving overall physical health (41%).

In addition, people aim to eat healthier (40%), enhance their holistic financial wellness (34%), spend more time outdoors (29%), and boost their mental health (29%).

Respondents say that mental health challenges (28%) and lack of time (22%) are typically the main obstacles preventing them from accomplishing their resolutions.

How people respond to these barriers also differs by generation. When faced with failure while pursuing a goal, Gen Z most commonly criticizes themselves or feels guilty (36%), whereas Millennials (42%), Gen X (48%), and Baby Boomers (55%) tend to accept failure as part of the process and keep moving forward.

Resolutions or no resolutions, American psychologist Mark Travers, Ph.D., says transformation is about determining which habits you can leverage to create a positive ripple effect across multiple areas of your life. He believes the average person's best bet is exercise, journaling, and mindfulness.

"A large review of 15 studies, involving over 190,000 participants, showed that simply doing half the recommended amount of exercise — for instance, walking about 1.25 hours a week — lowers the risk of depression by 18%. If one does the full recommended amount (about 2.5 hours a week) the risk is reduced by 25%," Travers explains.

"The research also suggests that if all sedentary adults were to become active, approximately 11.5% of all depression cases could be avoided."

When it comes to journaling, even a little bit, if it's done regularly, can make an impact. A randomized controlled trial that tracked the effects of 12 weeks of positive affect journaling found that it led to a reduction in anxiety and depressive symptoms. The activity also improved resilience and a sense of connection with others.

"Journaling as a practice comes in all kinds of shapes and forms, depending on its objective," Travers says. "Popular methods include mood journaling, goal journaling, gratitude journaling and even worry journaling (used to break negative thinking patterns)."

"No matter which variant you choose, journaling can assist you in monitoring the patterns of your life, clarifying your thoughts and reflecting on your emotions so you can regulate them better."

Finally, mindfulness. "The ability to focus and control one's feelings can be considered somewhat of a superpower in today's distracted world," Travers says. "Moving meditation, breathing exercises or even present-moment awareness practices help you in managing stress and regulating your emotions."

A large-scale review involving 9,538 people found that mindfulness produces small to moderate improvements in overall cognitive ability. It enhances attention, working memory, inhibition, task switching, and sustained focus.

"Starting with just a short daily practice of 5-10 minutes of mindful meditation can show marked benefits when sustained over time," Travers explains. "This is because mindfulness techniques help you notice life's positives, reducing automatic negative thoughts and helping you recalibrate your focus on the things that matter."

Whatever your journey is, good luck!