With each passing day, month and year, we commit to being better—better at our job, better with money, better with our schedule, better at calling people back, better at everything we’re supposed to be better at. What we forget to get better at is us. You, me, us—none of it would exist without our health. Let’s commit to getting better at being healthy. Then, and only then, can we focus on improving all the other aspects of our lives.

Here are five simple changes that will make you healthier, happier and, yes, better this year.

1. Exercise at least 25 minutes a day

No one can claim to be too busy to carve out a mere 25 minutes a day to get their heart pumping. No health club membership? No problem. A pair of dumbbells and a simple bench is all you need to tone and tighten your body. Split your workouts into five, five-minute phases: cardio warm-up, upper-body strength, lower-body strength, abdominals and cardio cool-down.

2. Make your day LESS efficient

That is not a typo. Try parking your car at the furthest point in the parking lot from the exit, getting off the subway or bus one stop early and taking the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator whenever you can. The extra bit of physical activity required to compensate for these “inefficient acts” not only adds up to hundreds of calories a month, but potentially the loss of several pounds of body fat, a stronger heart and denser bones over the course of one year.

3. Eat MORE often

Try eating five small meals a day. By “grazing” instead of “gorging,” you will stave off hunger, keep your metabolism humming and avoid energy swings throughout the day. Researchers at the University of Toronto found that those who ate several small meals a day had more control over what they ate and how much they ate at each meal.

4. Lose a vice

If you smoke, quit. Yes, it’s addicting; yes, it’s not easy to quit; and, yes, it tastes so good. On the other hand, it will kill you and those around you. Forget that it smells horrible, looks silly and costs much more than a membership to a health club. Also, if you drink more than a glass of alcohol a day, stop. It is addictive, destroys your liver and makes you gain body fat.

5. Enjoy a day of debauchery and freedom

I suggest that you do not do any structured exercise one day a week and allow yourself to indulge in any cuisine you like. By allowing a day of freedom, people are more apt to adhere to a long-term exercise and healthy eating lifestyle. Six steps forward and one step back still places us five paces ahead!

Harley, the man famous for getting Halle Berry into her catsuit, got his start training Jim Caviezel for Angel Eyes. His roster now includes everyone from Robert Downey Jr. to Alicia Keys and Kanye West. This L.A.-based trainer also has two fitness and nutrition books under his belt: 5-Factor Fitness and The 5-Factor Diet.