by Tiffanie Grady-Gillespie, Certified Physical Trainer, Certified Corporate Wellness Coach, WickedFiTT
Let’s be honest. How many people can’t wait to flip of the calendar to 2021? We are all looking forward to an opportunity for a fresh start in the new year. Like most of us, you may have had New Year’s resolutions focused on exercise, eating healthy or overall positive habits in the past, only to see them fade by March or April. Guilty.
Most people totally view New Year’s Day as the special day when they get to make a fresh, clean start. You know what we are talking about: the whole “new year, new you” phenomenon that starts every time the calendar switches to January.
And even despite our best intentions, many of us give up on our resolutions within a month. So how do you end up as the exception to the rule?
A huge factor in giving up on our New Year’s resolutions is setting such an unrealistic expectations as: “I want to shred on the guitar like Jimi Hendrix in four weeks.” (P.S. I have never played the guitar).
Unrealistic expectations lead to frustration and disappointment when you’ve been working toward one and don’t achieve it.
So, let’s be more realistic from the beginning. Start by picking one or maybe two specific goals that are realistic. If you achieve that goal sooner than you thought, great! Then you can move onto tackling another. But first, focus on just making one or two achievable goals/resolutions at a time.
Now, let’s talk about bad habits. Many of us have bad habits that can hinder us as we try to accomplish our New Year’s resolution. For instance, emotional eating can make losing weight a challenge. So, it’s important to overcome these bad habits to succeed. You can do this by forming healthy habits like snacking on vegetables or drinking more water.
Try to make your goals specific. If one of your resolutions is to lose weight. That’s rad! You’re definitely not alone because it’s one I hear all the time. But, not to be a buzzkill, that resolution is pretty general and very vague. How exactly are you going to get there? You might say: “Well, I’ll start exercising and eating healthier.” Ummmm, still vague.
An example of making a specific resolution and breaking it down is saying: “I’m going to lose 15 pounds by April 1 by committing to working out four days a week, meal prepping every Sunday for the week and giving up fast food.” The more specific your goal/resolution is, the better you can track your progress.
I believe so many people start to lose motivation if they don’t see results right away. It’s totally understandable — you put in the time but just don’t see a difference as soon as you expect. This is why it’s important to track your progress. Every productivity expert seems to have one common piece of advice about meeting your goals, which is to track every step of your journey.
By doing so, you can keep yourself on track throughout the year, and it helps you to keep your momentum going. You can also give yourself a reward to celebrate small wins in your progress.
Have a wonderful safe and healthy 2021. I am here for any fitness questions just shoot me an email at wickedfittgym@gmail.com
