… RUN FOREST…RUN!…
In 2015 what is it that you want to accomplish?
C’mon…think realistically.
Yes, everyone wants to do the cliche “Lose weight”… “Eat healthy”…”Be more active”. Those are all great goals! But…I challenge you to be more specific.
I am not saying that you have to run a marathon. Or complete a Tough Mudder. But, what is it that you REALLY want to do?
I saw this question on a friends facebook status and it evoked a lot of thoughts and questions that I started to ask myself. In 2014 I accomplished every physical goal that I set for myself. So now what do I strive for in 2015?
Losing weight
This is always a sensitive subject for me and for the clients that I work with. I try to challenge all of my clients to STOP weighing themselves. YES STOP IT! So many people let the numbers on the scale define who they are or the type of progress they are making. The number on the scale is NOT a true indication of your success. There are so many other things that you can monitor and track that are more beneficial and more accurate. Things like the inches you are losing around your waist…or your body fat percentage. We have to recondition our minds to think of other variables as valuable tools to help us track our progress.
Setting realistic goals
I challenge all of my clients to find something to work towards. Something that is not a number that can be traced by a scale. Some people pick a local 5k, an obstacle race, or some other endurance event. Some people pick things such as wanting to be able to lift a certain amount of weight, being able to jump a certain height, or being able to sustain a certain exercise for a length of time. These are all great REALISTIC goals. You have to find something that you want to do and something that you can continue to work towards.
Lifestyle change
Reaching your goals is about making a lifestyle change. It is not about a 30….60….90 day challenge that you can accomplish and then go back to your old habits. Working towards your goals should allow you to understand and adopt healthier habits that you can carry with you even after you create your goal. These habits include things such as learning what types of meal options to pick from when you go out to eat, what types of food to purchase and keep around the house (especially when you have a sweet tooth), setting a routine that will allow you stay active. You have to adopt a new lifestyle to reach your goals and to continue to move past them. Nothing makes my heart cry unless I have a client that works so hard for a month or so and then they revert back to their old habits and lose all of the progress that they made. Just because you reach your goals does not mean you stop. KEEP GOING! Set new goals and keep crushing them! It is about consistency and moving forward.
Rewards
This is my FAVORITE part about setting goals. Setting a reward to have when you reach those goals. Some people do not like the idea of rewarding your efforts to reach your goal. But, I do! Why not allow yourself something you have wanted after you work 30…60…90 days towards a goal. I actually use my fitness goals as a way to build towards my savings goal. Each week I will also set aside a certain amount of money (you can read about it HERE). Set aside money while you work towards your goals. When you reach your goals, you will have money to use towards your reward. So it is a win-win situation!
Getting healthy and fit is not something that will happen over night. You will have times where you will want to relax and not workout. There will be days you will want to indulge in some food that is not apart of your healthy eating plan. The struggle will be to keep fighting on the days that you are wanting to give up. The struggle will be sacrificing happy hour with your friends with time in the gym. You do not have to give up everything but, you will have to find a balance. Yes, YOU CAN DO IT!
