Happy New You!!
Are you one of the people that decided to make a resolution to lose weight or get more active? Congratulation…that’s the first step. If you’re like one of the MANY that made the same decision you probably decided to cut out the junk, eat more healthily, cut back on your portions and maybe even joined a gym or workout group. Of course, as soon as January 1 arrived you went gung ho and made every change possible and by the end of week 1 you said “man…this is HARD”
Weight loss isn’t an all-or-nothing venture; it’s a process that takes time. Making many changes at once is a recipe for failure. The very best approach is to make changes slowly and over time. For instance, instead of giving up all the little treats you’ve come to love, start by cutting back on one snack a day…or adding an extra vegetable to a daily meal. By week two, make another change such as only going out to eat once a week or introducing a healthy snack a few times a week. By the end of a month of these little changes you are setting yourself up for success!
One of the keys to successful weight loss or to achieving your fitness goals is to have a plan already worked out on how to get there. This plan should look at where you are now, where you want to be, and then create a specific, measurable and realistic goal that will detail all the actions you have to take in order to arrive at your destination.
Think long-term goals (the product) and short-term goals (the process) First, set a long-term goal. Questions to ask might be “What do I want to accomplish in 6 months…a year…5 years? Use the SMART principle when establishing long-term goals.
S-Specific. To say you want to lose weight is too general. Saying “I want to lose 10 pounds by xx date, by choosing to eat healthier foods and increasing my activity to 3 days a week” is better.
M-Measurable. If your goal is to lose weight or inches, make sure you know how you will measure your progress. It could be by taking measurements or weekly weigh-ins (WEEKLY…not daily!) If your goal is too general such as “I want to feel better” then there is little you can do to measure that and you won’t really be able to tell when you reach that goal. I personally hate the scale. While it gives you a number to track, your weight can fluctuate by the hour and too many people focus their success on that number. Better is to measure how your clothes fit…are they getting looser. Look in the mirror…are you noticing changes? Ok, this is under the heading “Measurable” and looking in the mirror is subjective but just don’t become a slave to the scale, deal?
A-Achievable. Goals should be challenging yet not too easy either. If a goal is too easy then you could lose motivation to continue
R-Realistic. Your goal should be something you are willing to work toward and something you are capable of. To say that you want to lose 20 pounds in 30 days isn’t realistic and will set you up for failure. Make a plan for 1-2 pounds a week. Any more than that and you probably aren’t losing fat but rather water and muscle and that’s no good!
T-Timely. Set up a specific date in which you want to complete your goal. Goals can be set daily (such as you want to complete your daily workout) or a time in the future such as to be able to increase the number of push-ups you can do in 3 months’ time.
Once long-term goals are established, think short-term or process goals. These are things you have to do daily in order to achieve long-term goals. Short-term goals might be to complete your daily workouts, take a nutrition course to learn about healthy eating, prepare a space to work out in etc. Short-term goals help you to keep your focus on the here and now. One way to help you remain on your path is to keep a daily log of your workouts or perhaps a record of what you ate that day or even writing in a journal about how you are feeling about the process. A log lets you see progress you are making and even serves as a reward when you are able to mark down that you completed a daily workout. Don’t discount this, a log or journal is very helpful and can be a key to success. Don’t forget to celebrate your daily/weekly successes and reward yourself!
When planning your goals it’s important to look ahead at possible distractions in the future. For instance, is there a holiday coming up that may derail your exercise or diet? Make a plan of action on just how you will handle these situations in advance so that you are prepared.
Let’s take a look at some common problems that people run into when setting goals (and how you can avoid those pitfalls):
Setting only long-term goals. It’s important to think of what you need to do on a daily basis to achieve your long-term goal. This is your road map on how you are going to get there.
Failing to set SMART goals. Follow the formula for goal setting…it works
Setting too many goals. Keep your long-term goals simple. 1-3 goals is plenty and having too many will become overwhelming.
Failing to adjust goals. Sometimes life gets in the way and you may become side-tracked away from you path. That’s ok! Re-evaluate your goals and set up new time-lines if you need to but don’t give up!
Lack of support. Tell people what your plans are. If people know what you are trying to accomplish, they may be more willing to help you in your journey. Let them know that you may need them to help you along the way from time to time. That may involve an encouraging word, working out with you, maybe a drive to the gym when needed, or even just having other people aware so that they are less likely to throw you cake party at the next get together (Are cake parties even a thing?)
So, your homework…have a plan and start sloooooooowly. As they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither is that is that new you that you will be building in 2016!