The decision has been made. You’ve had enough! You are going to the store to buy new workout pants then head directly over to the grocery store to stock up on “healthy foods”.
You’re going to go HAM on this new lifestyle change! WAIT! Do you have a plan? What are your specific goals? Do you know what kinds of meals you want to eat? Do you know what kind of workouts are going to work for you? NO? Well holy hell!
Be prepared to epically fail if you have a “balls out”, “all of nothing” approach to changing your body. It will keep you in the horrible cycle of “well, THIS isn’t working, so eff it” kinda yo-yo lifestyle!
Here are 10 game changing, MINDSET altering tools on PLANNING TO SUCCEED:
1) “ALL OR NOTHING” WILL KILL YOU
First off, GET A GRIP! You didn’t get this way over night. So guess what? It works the other way around too. Be aware that this process is going to be just that, a process! You are setting yourself up for failure and a crappy mindset if you view life (and fitness) in terms of “good” and “bad”, 100% or NOTHING! Make it a habit to run through an end-of-day list of what you did right, why it worked, and how you can improve tomorrow.
2) RIGHT NOW WRITE IT DOWN…
The first thing you’ll need is a JOURNAL and some fun pens to get you motivated and pumped about writing ish down! Let’s make this fun! Lets face it, if it’s not fun and not keeping you interested then you probably are going to quit and YOU DON’T WANT TO QUIT AGAIN DO YOU? I didn’t think so.
3) SEEK OUT PRESENT MOMENT CONSCIOUSNESS
The reason to write is to get in the NOW is to start to become aware of your habits, reactions, and navigation through your day regarding food, stress, triggers, happiness etc. You’ll better be able to draw conclusions about what’s working, what’s not…and stop making the same mistakes over and over. When you are future focused (obsessing about the million things you have to do tomorrow) or past focused (dwelling on what could have been, should have been, who has wronged you etc)…you MISS everything that’s happening right NOW.
4) GOALS ARE JUST DREAMS UNTIL YOU WRITE THEM DOWN
Now that you have your journal you need to put it to use. Start off by writing the goals that you want. Here are some examples; “I want to lose 10 pounds.”, “I will make my healthy lunch and snacks 4 days out of 5 this week”, “I want to run a 5K in 2 months”. They can be whatever! They’re your goals! But the more real you make these goals the more likely you will be to attain them. What separates THE MOST SUCCESSFUL people from the “talkers” are hand written goals.
5) GOALS ARE NOT SECRETS!
Like my good buddy Jennifer Stack always says.. “Tell EVERYONE around you that you have made up your mind to change things in your life… becuase you WILL need their support (and accountability!)” Facebook followers, real life friends, co workers, your doorman… The more people that know what you WANT and HOW you are going to achieve it…the more likely you are to FOLLOW THROUGH and not let yourself off the hook.
6) SOCIAL SUPPORT IN CASE YOU WANT TO BACK DOWN
In this journey…you WILL need help! We ALL do. Depression-chocolate tastes like crap…minutes after you scarf it down. Instead of getting the candy bar, do something healthy! Take a walk, call a loved one, journal about the crazppy feelings that are actually driving you to make these less-than-healthy decisions!!! Solitary trips to the gym and proclamations to start on Monday…just aren’t happening. When was the last time the treadmill high-fived you? The more good people you have around you in this journey, the better the chances you have to succeed! That’s the goal isn’t it?
7) NO ONE IS BORN A HEALTH NUT
Don’t be envious of the super fit and those who seem to “NEVER” have trouble eating right, working out all the time. They LEARNED TO DO THESE THINGS and incorporate them into their lifestyle. What have you done to educate yourself? Take a couple minutes to peruse the internet for healthy meal recipes. Read local blogs (like this one!) on healthy eating and fitness tips! Attend talks and take classes of fitness leaders that inspire you!
8) CLEANSE AND PURGE YOUR CLOSETS
Throw away the depression and trigger foods… Don’t leave boobie traps in arms length! It’s like the smoker that keeps an extra pack hidden somewhere just in case! In case what? You may want it? OF COURSE YOU’RE GOING TO WANT IT!!! Setting up your environment for success is the crux of proper planning and “control.”
9) MARK UP A CONSISTENCY CALENDAR
Each Sunday sit in front of your weekly calendar. Use it to map out your workouts, meetings and anything that will mess w/ your consistency so you can PLAN AHEAD for success!
10) ANTICIPATE OBSTACLES
No matter what you do or how well you PLAN…LIFE will get in the way sometimes. Knowing that detours will arise will help shape your mindset to one of gentleness on yourself instead of quilt, anger and self sabotage. This mindset will help you shorten the time-off after a misstep and allow you to get right back on that horse within hours instead of weeks or months!
If you don’t plan for success then you plan for failure.
Becoming the best possible version of yourself means actually taking the time to do that. It takes time to prep meals. It takes time to stop at the grocery store. IT TAKES PLANNING! You’re healthy life needs a plan. It’s what I call “mapping out your success.”
YOU CAN DO IT! I believe in you…now YOU have to believe in you!
Laura Miranda MSPT, CSCS
www.StrongHealthyWoman.com
Info@StrongHealthyWoman.com
646.454.0777
