Gift guide: 11 ideas for a happier, healthier New Year | CNN

Get moving: Fitness trackers —

Why just brag that you went to the gym for 30 minutes when you can rattle off the number of calories you burned, steps taken or stairs climbed? A fitness tracker, with its heart rate monitor, accelerometer and other sensors, gives your giftee the power to closely monitor their activity levels and set new personal bests. The Fitbit Charge HR and Jawbone UP2, pictured, have drawn praise for accuracy and simplicity, and will set you back $149.95 and $99.99, respectively.

Jawbone.com

Stay fit: Subscription services —

You can help that special someone stick to their New Year's resolution to stay fit by having a care package of healthy snacks and other motivating goodies shipped to them every month. Options and prices abound, but one popular subscription box service is StrideBox, geared to runners and other athletes. A three or six-month gift subscription costs $50 or $90. My Subscription Addiction has plenty of other ideas for those resolving to lose weight or eat healthy.

stridebox.com

It is easier to get pumped up for a workout when you have a shiny new home gym. <a href="http://www.bowflex.com/bowflex-home-gyms-us/bowflex.jsp" target="_blank" target="_blank">Bowflex</a> is a popular home gym. Prices start around $350 for the classic PR100 Home Gym, which gives users about 30 upper and lower body exercises. For Santas with deeper pockets, there is the Revolution Home Gym for $2,500, which offers 90 exercises and has newer resistance technology that makes for easier use.

Work out regularly: Home gym —

It is easier to get pumped up for a workout when you have a shiny new home gym. Bowflex is a popular home gym. Prices start around $350 for the classic PR100 Home Gym, which gives users about 30 upper and lower body exercises. For Santas with deeper pockets, there is the Revolution Home Gym for $2,500, which offers 90 exercises and has newer resistance technology that makes for easier use.

Bowflex.com

Those big plans to eat healthier in the new year can fall away as the pace of life picks up. With this nifty gadget, the <a href="http://www.oster.com/deals/volume-discount/oster-blend-n-go-my-blend-blender-blue/BLSTPB-WBL-000.html" target="_blank" target="_blank">Oster Blend-N-Go My Blend Blender</a>, the object of your gifting affection can blend a healthy shake or smoothie in a BPA-free sports bottle that doubles as a to-go cup. The four-part appliance goes for about $25.

Eat healthier: Blend up a snack —

Those big plans to eat healthier in the new year can fall away as the pace of life picks up. With this nifty gadget, the Oster Blend-N-Go My Blend Blender, the object of your gifting affection can blend a healthy shake or smoothie in a BPA-free sports bottle that doubles as a to-go cup. The four-part appliance goes for about $25.

Oster.com

Read more: E-book reader —

An e-book reader may help motivate that special someone who vows to read more in the new year, especially if they also want to travel more (both are popular resolutions). An 8-ounce device can hold an impressive library of hundreds to thousands of books. There's Amazon's high-end Kindle Voyage, pictured, for about $200 or the more affordable classic Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook Glowlight, for $50 and $100 respectively.

The Kindle Voyage

That New Year's resolution to stress less can be so much easier said than done, but coloring -- yes, the kind with crayons and coloring books -- <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/21/living/feat-adult-coloring-books/">might facilitate relaxation</a>. Offer your stress-stricken loved one a coloring book for adults, which range from around $7 to $13, or order a monthly subscription to <a href="http://www.doodl.club/" target="_blank" target="_blank">Doodl.club</a>, which will get them books with wacky designs by artists such as Jim Stoten, for $7 a month.

Reduce stress: Coloring books —

That New Year's resolution to stress less can be so much easier said than done, but coloring -- yes, the kind with crayons and coloring books -- might facilitate relaxation. Offer your stress-stricken loved one a coloring book for adults, which range from around $7 to $13, or order a monthly subscription to Doodl.club, which will get them books with wacky designs by artists such as Jim Stoten, for $7 a month.

Running Press Book Publishers

Many of us resolve to enjoy life more in the new year, and for many of us that starts with a better night's sleep. <a href="https://www.lsgc.com/products/good-night-sleep-better-led-lamp-bulb?variant=1234091904" target="_blank" target="_blank">The Good Night Biological LED Lamp bulb</a> by Lighting Science sells for $39.95. It filters out blue light, which can disrupt sleep and throw off your biological clock. Plug the bulb in your bedside lamp for a more calming nighttime environment -- and for even better ambiance, turn off blue-light emitting TVs and smartphone, too.

Sleep better: Smart lightbulbs —

Many of us resolve to enjoy life more in the new year, and for many of us that starts with a better night's sleep. The Good Night Biological LED Lamp bulb by Lighting Science sells for $39.95. It filters out blue light, which can disrupt sleep and throw off your biological clock. Plug the bulb in your bedside lamp for a more calming nighttime environment -- and for even better ambiance, turn off blue-light emitting TVs and smartphone, too.

lsgc.com

Spend time with family: Great games —

If your family has resolved to spend more time together -- or you have resolved that for them! -- family game night can be just the ticket. Spice things up with twists on old favorites. Run Wild, $10, is a riff on the card game Uno! Telestrations, $20 to $40, is a creative take on Pictionary, and Word on the Street, $30, is a team-based game similar to Scrabble.

Shutterstock

Celebrate more: Wine —

Those resolutions to stay in better touch with friends in the new year can quickly be forgot, just like old acquaintances. A great bottle of wine can be just the excuse needed for a get-together. Through Club W, you can gift that special someone three bottles of wine of their choosing for a total of $50 -- just hope that they don't pick some that are so good they don't want to share!

Shutterstock

Perhaps the hardest resolution of all is to quit smoking. You can support your loved one through the gift of a membership to the <a href="http://www.ffsonline.org/" target="_blank" target="_blank">American Lung Association's Freedom From Smoking Online</a>, which gives them access to tools for making a quit plan and an online community of fellow quitters. Membership costs $15 for three months, or $40 for a year, and they can be started at any time.

Quit smoking: Tools to help —

Perhaps the hardest resolution of all is to quit smoking. You can support your loved one through the gift of a membership to the American Lung Association's Freedom From Smoking Online, which gives them access to tools for making a quit plan and an online community of fellow quitters. Membership costs $15 for three months, or $40 for a year, and they can be started at any time.

Shutterstock

If your giftee is really serious about their resolution to get organized, "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up," the best-selling book by <a href="http://tidyingup.com/" target="_blank" target="_blank">decluttering wiz Marie Kondo</a>, will lead them through it. It prescribes strategies for clearing all the unnecessary items out of your home once and for all. At about $10 a book, that is gift money well spent!

Get organized: A guide to tidying —

If your giftee is really serious about their resolution to get organized, "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up," the best-selling book by decluttering wiz Marie Kondo, will lead them through it. It prescribes strategies for clearing all the unnecessary items out of your home once and for all. At about $10 a book, that is gift money well spent!

Ten Speed Press

Gifts for a healthier, happier new year

Story highlights

While gifting, consider your friends' and family members' New Year's resolutions

Showing support for their goals could be the greatest gift of all

CNN —

Don’t we all have that one person on our holiday shopping list who is just impossible to buy for? You could give them yet another gift card or artisanal chocolate bar – or maybe you can get them something that really will make them happier.

This season, ask your picky partner or has-everything sibling about their New Year’s resolution. There’s a good chance they made one – about 40% of Americans do – and the answer could give you some great gifting insight.

Many of us set out to stay fit and healthy, lose weight and enjoy life more. According to a Nielsen survey, those were the top three resolutions in 2015. Saving money, spending more time with friends and family and getting organized were also high on the list.

However these popular goals may be a bit too ambitious, which could explain why New Year’s resolutions often melt away with the winter snow. A classic 1985 study found that 55% of people stuck to their goals through January, and 40% made it to June.

Here is where your thoughtful gift comes in. Experts think part of the reason resolutions fail is that people are not motivated enough to do the work to change their habits. That shiny new gadget you give them to track their fitness or prepare healthier meals could make those goals more realistic – and more fun! – to attain.

You will also be showing your support to your loved one in their new endeavors, which could be the greatest gift of all.