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Two of the most popular resolutions we make every New Year is to lose weight and become better with our finances. But losing weight often means paying for a gym membership, so we're willing to spend a little more to accomplish our dreams of a better body before we start saving again and paying off our credit cards.

Making a resolution is the easy part — not everyone actually takes the initiative to sign up for a gym membership. So who's actually acting on their resolutions at the beginning of the year?

We looked at the top 100 cities in the U.S. by population from April 2010 to March 2011 to see which cities had residents signing up for the most new gym memberships during the first two weeks of January. We normalized the data, which comes from the U.S. government, anonymous and aggregated credit card transactions from Citi, and third party data providers, based on the average number of people who sign up for gym memberships each year. We then ranked the cities by where the highest percentage of new gym signups were occurring.

According to our data, the national average for gym signups during the first two weeks of January is 5.6 percent. The city with the most gym signups: Newark, New Jersey, where 9.3 percent of all gym signups for residents occur during the first two weeks of January, or 66 percent higher than the national average. At the bottom of the list is Montgomery, Alabama where 2.5 percent of gym signups occur during the first two weeks of January, or 56 percent below the national average. Check out our infographic here to see how your city compares.

Of course, if saving money is your other resolution, you shouldn't commit to a gym membership unless you know you'll actually take advantage of it, and not drop the routine after a month or two.

"It's an investment," says Andrea Metcalf, author of Naked Fitness. "Just like investing your money, you have to contribute for it to actually pay off in the long run. Ask for a 30-day trial membership. Gyms do these throughout the entire year. They just usually don't advertise it."

Also: Walking is free, and so is taking the stairs. The gym isn't tailor-made for everyone, but committing to take more walks every day is easy and wallet-friendly.

Here are the Top 10 Cities spending the most on new gym memberships in the first two weeks of January:

1. Newark, New Jersey
• 66 percent above the national average

2. Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky
• 41 percent above the national average

3. Jersey City, New Jersey
• 66 percent above the national average

4. Garland, Texas
• 39 percent above the national average

5. Washington, D.C.
• 37 percent above the national average

6. Boston, Massachusetts
• 35 percent above the national average

7. Modesto, California
• 35 percent above the national average

8. Arlington, Virginia
• 31 percent above the national average

9. Bakersfield, California
• 27 percent above the national average

10. Minneapolis, Minnesota
• 25 percent above the national average


Related Links:

• 5 ways to lose weight at home without spending money

• What it costs to be a man: A parody of gents

• 8 items that can save you on a gym membership