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| Sound familiar? Was this you? |
It’s been nearly six months since we started a new year with the best of intentions to get back in shape and clean up our plates. Six months… do they feel more like six years?? Perhaps back in January you did have some success in jump-starting your health goals, but your enthusiasm has waned. This is TOTALLY NORMAL. Without the motivation to keep going, it’s not likely for anyone to keep on track. Don’t let me be misunderstood – motivation is not someone yelling at you to run yourself into the ground. It's about identifying some very good reasons to do something, and to light that up inside you.
What motivates you? What doesn’t? Today I’d like to offer you a few ways that help me keep motivated and be successful in accomplishing my goals...
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| Yes you can! |
#1 Give yourself a mini pep talk
Take a few minutes out every day and to take a long hard look in the mirror. Ask yourself: "Am I okay with what I see? Do I feel as healthy as I should? Am I making improvements? Or am I robbing my health and happiness by making poor choices?"
You can then decide what you're going to do *Today* for you! Not tomorrow, not Monday but today, because remember – tomorrow is no guarantee. Would you be disappointed with how you’ve cared for yourself if you were only promised today? What can you do to improve your health today and every day that follows?
#2 Get support
Do you have a friend or family member to talk to when you start feeling de-motivated? Simply knowing that your 'go-to' person is there for you is a HUGE help.
Perhaps you could even give them permission to stop you from eating unhealthy foods, or to probe you in the right direction when you haven't exercised in a while? J
There’s a multitude of online support groups for weight-loss motivation as well. The Good Life Center is an obvious one (wink, wink). I am here for you to answer questions and am always eager to bestow my nutrition wisdom! J Others that I have found informative include: PEER Trainer and Dietriffic – both offer daily/weekly emails on topics covering motivation as well as reducing stress and anxiety, emotional eating, boosting metabolism, and more!
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| SMART goals |
#3 Set realistic goals
This is perhaps one of the most crucial bits of advice that I can offer. We live in an instant-gratification society and too often, people set their sights on an ultimate goal that can take months, if not years to achieve. Who can sustain motivation with that kind of time lapse?
Ask yourself, what are your goals? If they are set for the long-term, what is your plan to keep from feeling overwhelmed by what you're trying to achieve?
This is when smaller, more manageable goals come into play. They act as milestones along the path to your greater, more final goals.
Statistics show that simply losing 5-10% current body weight CAN improve your health, so why not start there? How do you determine this percentage? An example is if you currently weigh 200 pounds, your initial goal should be to drop 10-20 pounds. Once you reach this goal you can re-access and decide if you need to lose any more.
Another strategy is when you’re tempted by a slice of cheesecake (or whatever your vice may be) try to visualize how much better you will feel tomorrow if you pass on this indulgence. Imagine the improved energy levels, the flatter stomach, the lack of a sugar-crash…
Additionally, it’s beneficial to not only track your progress but also your actions. Following the theme of setting fitness goals, many people can get frustrated when they set a specific goal, such as “lose 20 pounds by summer” – and then fall short. To make this goal more action-oriented, set a goal for the amount of physical activity you do every week and whether you keep your calories below a certain threshold. These are actions to take that will ultimately result in progress.
#4 Get your priorities right
Is your health high on your list of priorities? There's no doubt about it we're all guilty of putting everything else before our health.
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| You deserve to be happy! |
But, despite all of our instincts, you need to realize just how important looking after your health is RIGHT NOW. How else can you take care of the other loved ones in your life if you’re sick and unhealthy?
If you don’t make time for your goals, you’ll never accomplish them – it’s as simple as that. Along those same lines, the more time you allocate per day to your goal, the faster you’ll achieve it.
Rather than leave it to chance, I recommend scheduling a specific time every day for your goal. I think this is part of the reason why organized sports and personal trainers are so effective for people looking to improve their fitness – the activity has a set block of time on their schedule, and so people attend regularly.
If your goal is to start preparing more meals at home, schedule a specific time each week to prepare a weekly menu. Take this with you on your grocery trip and perhaps even prep the majority of the meals ahead of time. My favorite time for this is Sunday afternoons.
#5 Visualize your ideal weight
Do you have a picture of yourself when you were slimmer?
Many people find looking at an old picture of him/herself is a great way to stay focused. Try pinning it to your bathroom mirror as a daily reminder of what you're trying to achieve. You should also realize that weight loss is not about the results on your weighing scales - it should be about improving your eating and exercise habits, so that your health is *improved* as a result. The by-product of this is not only weight loss, but also feeling better!
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| So true. |
What are the reasons why being healthy is important to you?
I once heard someone say, “you just have to have one good day. Don't think about doing well all week, or even the next specific event that comes up. Just commit to one good day. It's amazing the resolve that comes the next day, when you've been on track for one day.” When you think about it, one day doesn't seem like a big enough impact to turn everything around, but it is. Just commit to having one good day, follow through and you'll be shocked at how that one good day turns into three more days and hopefully from there to three weeks!
And so now I'll leave you with a few more motivational quotes that I love set into pretty pictures:
What are some of the quotes or sayings that inspire you?
Here’s to happy health,
Chloe RD and the GLC
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