While starting an exercise routine is a popular New Year’s resolution, abandoning that resolution early on is almost as common. The journey from resolution to reality is often paved with setbacks.

Several factors impact whether a commitment to exercise thrives or dies.

Usually, planning and starting a workout routine seems daunting. The best advice I can give anyone is to start where you are with what you have, how you are, and figure out a way to make do.

It’s important to set a realistic movement goal at the outset. For beginners, I suggest setting aside a minimum of 30 minutes each day to do physical activities with cardio and strength training benefits. If time is an issue, three brisk 10-minute walks can be substituted for one 30-minute walk. In addition, playing with the kids, doing yard work, housework or sweeping out the garage can provide a workout.

For those looking for a structured startup exercise regimen, apps like Fitbod and MyFitnessPal can help.

Gym equipment isn’t required for an effective workout. Several basic exercise tools are versatile and inexpensive. For example, stretch bands can be used for resistance or for assistance in modifying more challenging exercises like pull-ups.

If free weights aren’t an option, strength training can be accomplished using household items such as soup cans, water bottles and milk jugs. Simple strength exercises can also be adapted to tighten the core and improve balance by shifting them from bilateral to lateral movements.

Motivation matters as much as planning your routine does. Identifying triggers that motivate you toward positive health behaviors will help you stick with them. It could be aesthetic. It could be performance-based. It could be that you’ve struggled with illness or you want to build some endurance. Whatever that happens to be, remembering your “why” is important for any goal you set. It’s a lifestyle; it’s not just a short-term solution to abandon as soon as you’ve checked the box.

Overly ambitious goals can lead to injuries and burnout. Workouts don’t have to be intense to be effective, especially for people coming back to exercising after an injury or illness, or beginning exercise after a period of inactivity. It’s human nature to try to pick up where we left off, when in fact, it would be better long term to ease in and make incremental progress. There’s a huge difference between soreness from a challenging workout and pain from pushing your physical limits too far or too fast.

While being consistently active is another key to achieving a physical fitness goal, giving yourself grace when you mess up is, too. We want to cultivate good habits, not punish bad habits.

Accountability and support can make it harder to abandon a resolution when setbacks and challenges arise. Fitness technology can help by logging activity and quantifying progress. Smartwatches can track steps. There are now AI-enabled scales that can show you what your body would look like at certain weights. Those are all great if data points are accountability motivators for you.

Qualitative results from exercise are important to note, too. Even seemingly small gains are significant, like decreased stress, improved focus and energy, better balance and increased strength and mobility. Those are things friends, family or a workout buddy likely will notice, providing further accountability and encouragement.

Ultimately, exercise should not feel like a chore. A fitness routine will only be sustainable if it’s one you enjoy, so figure out what that is for you. There is no one-size-fits-all exercise regimen. It’s about finding and cultivating how our bodies love to move. It’s also about longevity. It’s about what you can do today that you can keep doing for the rest of your days.

Toby Brooks, Ph.D., is director of the Master of Athletic Training program at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center’s School of Health Professions