Do you remember when you said to yourself, ?I?m going to get in shape!? or ?this is the year I?m going to lose weight!?  Maybe it was ?I?m going to touch my toes?, ?start running?, or ?quit using added sugar.? You laced up your running shoes, threw the doughnuts in the trash and set off on your journey.

 

After a few weeks, you?re going strong ? Good for you!

 

And then SMACK, life hits you in the face. You get sick/go on vacation/have a bad day at work, so you take a few days off ?just until things get settled down a bit.?  Then you one day look up and it?s a year later and instead of being closer to reaching your goal your further away and a year older

 

Here are some tips on how to not trip yourself up this time around: Clearly Define WHY you want it.

Do these excuses Sound familiar?

 

If that?s how you feel, then don?t do it, and remain forever stuck where you are!  It?s as simple as that.

 

Have you ever known you should get in shape but your just not motivated to do so??   You cannot pull motivation out top hat ? There?s no magic pill. Motivation needs to erupt from within you. Why do you desire to get in shape or lose weight?

 

Your motivation can come from anything and anywhere, but you need to own it as your own. As Viktor Frankl says, ?Those who have a why to live can bear with almost any how.?  What is your WHY? When you connect with your why, giving up sugar or using the steps instead of the elevator, will no longer seems like such a huge sacrifice, because you truly understand that the mission is deeper. When you discover that one thing you want more than anything in the world, You can use that to build up motivation to go after what you desire. Waking up early in the morning to exercise, saying no to cookies, staying away from ice cream at the supermarket ? these changes might be hard, but if they are what stands between you and what you desire, you have to make the sacrifice for the bigger picture.

Be specific

 

When setting a goal, you need to be as detailed as possible. If weight loss is a goal, 

I?m only using weight loss as an example, it should not be the only marker of success, but it?s certainly better than nothing. If you want to get stronger or more flexible, How would you go about reaching your goal?

 

Don?t be a sucka be specific!

 

Imagine you?re in a cab ? setting a vague goal would be like saying ?take me to New York. ? The driver will get you to NY, but without knowing the address you will only reach but so far. You may still may be many miles and/or hours away from your destination.

In the words of the  Cheshire Cat of Alice in Wonderland, ?If you don?t know where you?re going, any road will get you there.?

If you?re going to ?lose weight?. How much weight do you want to lose and by when? 30 pounds by July 1st, 100 pounds by the end of December?

If you?re going to ?increase flexibility. How will you measure your progress? Is it being able to touch your toes or scratch your back?

If your running a marathon, will you track your time, distance or both?

Once you?ve established your goals, jot them down and place them where you can  Look at them EVERY SINGLE DAY so that they stay fresh in your mind.

 

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Too many people over & over again try to lose weight by ?dieting? and doing cardio for hours. This will last a few weeks and they quit, maybe they?ll try again in a couple of months or later, but doing it the same way will yield the same results.

If last year you tried to ?get in shape?  and failed, you should be Congratulated ? you?ve uncovered at least one method that doesn?t work for you. Unless you?re insane (which I won?t rule out), you?ll need to either try a new method or approach a previous method from a new perspective. What was the cause of your last failure, figure out what went wrong & where ? learn from those past failures and use that wisdom towards the planning of your upcoming goals.

 

If you failed because you hate running and quit, give resistance training a go.

If you failed to lose weight by counting calories, that may not be a good fit for you. Give portion control a chance. 

Remember, those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. Get off the hamster wheel and  doing the same thing over and over again ? if something new doesn?t work, adapt fast learn & from it and KEEP IT MOVING.

 

Document Your Progress

 

Small victories in tiny increments can lead to big improvements over a consistent period of time.

 

Be adaptable

 

Let?s say you set out to lose 100 pounds, but so far you?ve only lost 50 pounds on your current regime of treadmill running and zumba. You may never lose that last 50 pounds, if you don?t start resistance training. Some people would get discouraged & quit. Instead of seeking out another tool to use. Goals change and so does Life.

Set specific goals, so you can connect & visualize where you?re headed.

Document your progress daily, so you can make adjustments when needed, without wondering what needs to be altered. 

Your intent should be to do better today than you did yesterday, even the smallest way, start racking up small wins, that will be huge for your confidence moving forward.

 

The past is Gone

 

The faster you accept where you are, the faster you?ll reach where you're going. It doesn?t matter if you?re 10 or 100 pounds overweight, drink 8 cups of coffee a day, $100,000 in debt, and at a dead-end job while still living with your parents in your childhood bedroom. That was you then? Now you have the choice to do something different. Yesterday is in the wind. Today is the first day of the rest of your life.