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How many times have you sat down at the end of December and thought, “This year is going to be MY year!”? Then January 1st rolls around and you feel excited, motivated, and committed to your New-Year-New-You goals. But somehow by January 5th, you’re back on the couch with a bag of chips and your third glass of wine.
This is a common scenario, largely because goal setting is the easy part—it’s having the right mindset, creating a plan, and staying consistent that’s hard. But why? Why is it so dang hard to set a goal and stay committed to it? For starters, too many times we rush into the goal (“I’m going to lose weight!”) without thinking about the results we are truly after, what steps we need to take in order to achieve the goal, and what could potentially get in the way of our success.
But this year can be different. By taking the right steps, from setting your goals and creating accountability, to preparing for the hard stuff and finally, celebrating your success, you can achieve each of the things you set out to do. Here’s how:
1. DEFINE YOUR GOAL AND REMEMBER YOUR WHY.
Simply saying you want to lose weight or be healthy is not enough. Ask yourself why you want to lose weight. Will it mean that you can have the energy to play with your children? Is it so that you feel more confident when you wear a sleeveless top or workout pants? Why do you want to be healthy? Is there a history of disease in your family you are trying to prevent? When you can get clear on why you want the things you do, you will be more likely to be motivated to work towards those specific goals.
2. CREATE A RITUAL.
It’s not as much about the huge, all-encompassing changes that will help you hit your goals, as it is the small, daily actions that will lead towards creating the most impactful shifts in your health, body, and life. For example: instead of setting a goal right out of the gates to eat perfectly for every meal all seven days of the week, why don’t you simply begin with breakfast? Swap out your coffee and bagel for a nutrient-dense smoothie. This one daily action will help to curb your cravings, stabilize your blood sugar, stoke your metabolism, and provide your body with the nutrition it requires. Plus, it will create a ripple effect into your other health conscious choices throughout the day. Once you have accomplished this one new goal and made it a habit, try adding a second new ritual to your daily routine.
3. JOURNAL.
The power of writing our goals down and revisiting them often is going to be huge in creating the right mindset for hitting your goals. Write down your training sessions, what you ate, how you slept, how you felt, what was fabulous in your day, where you struggled, and what you are going to do to get back on track. You can do this daily or weekly to help keep your eyes on the prize.
4. BE ACCOUNTABLE.
Accountability is crucial when it comes to following through on goals and expectations. Can you buddy up with someone who wants to hit those same goals? If not, perhaps you hire a trainer or coach to hold you accountable, or join a Facebook group. Signing up for classes for which you have to show up is another way to make sure you stay on track.
5. BE OKAY WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE.
If exercising, eating healthy, and getting enough sleep were easy, we would all be fit and healthy. There’s no denying that creating these new habits, these disciplines, is going to be hard at first. But discomfort is actually a very good thing. That discomfort, that little voice that is telling you to stop, that it’s hard work, that you’re not strong enough or good enough or worth it? It is simply a gauge. A gauge of how badly you really want to change. Lean into it! Push through, keep going, and you will emerge on the other side stronger and more confident, and that little voice will start getting quieter.
6. CELEBRATE EACH SUCCESS.
When you show up to the gym, high-five yourself. When you drink 2 liters of water in a day, pat yourself on the back. When you pass on the office donuts and have a healthy snack instead, fist-pump that choice! And if you choose to gift yourself with tangible rewards, make sure they are the kind that will keep you on point. A box of cookies will not be that thing. But a massage, new sneakers, or that amazing blender you’ve had your eye on for your smoothies? Now those items will fill you back up, girl!
Jenn Pike is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Bestselling author of The Simplicity Project:
A Simple, No-Nonsense Approach To Losing Weight & Changing Your Body Forever!
Twitter: @simplicityjenn | Instagram: @jennpike | Facebook.com/jenn.pike.3
