Happy New year Fit Squad!
First of all, 2020? WHAT the heck was that? You could’ve given us a little warning because we did not see any of that coming. I really hope 2021 has a little bit more sense. Anyhoo, as we have survived the wrath of 2020, we’ve entered a new year. My word for this year is INTENT. I am moving with more intent and so should you. You should be intentional with your goals and align yourself with things and people that will support your growth. This means setting higher standards and higher goals for yourselves, be it personally or in your careers. In relation to this blog, fitness. Now raise your hand if each year you always seem to make a few New Year resolutions that only lasted until mid January? Raise your hand if you said “I’ll start taking my fitness journey seriously in January” and never did.
…OR, maybe you just might go through this process every day? You promise yourself that you’ll improve your lifestyle almost every morning, but find yourself giving into a sweet treat by noon! You say, “Oh well, one slice of pizza wont hurt” and one slice turns into you eating half a box of pizza.
If you feel like you can relate to either of these situations, its time to learn how to overcome those obstacles. You might feel as if you’ll never surpass some of these challenges—but you can. In order to see progress and results you must start building self discipline. This is what will help you throughout your journey. Discipline will help you say no to the things that are not favorable to you or your goals.
Here are my top three tips to help you stay focused and get after your fitness goals this year:
1. Set Long- & Short-Term Goals.
One mistake a lot of you make is setting long term goals for the short term. No Karen, you cannot lose 30 kilos in time for your birthday in 2 weeks. It always confuses me how people want to get rid of a lifetime of unhealthy habits in just a short time frame. If it took you years to put on 40 kilos, it will not take you 2 weeks to get rid of it.
Now in order to set realistic goals, think about the future and what you want to achieve. Maybe you want to lose 50 pounds over the next 12 months. Write it down. Now write down the things that you’re going to do in order to make this goal happen. For example, Each day i will do X amount of workouts, I will eat this for breakfast, lunch, dinner etc. Get into the habit of creating monthly goals, or even weekly goals. For instance, you can reasonably lose 1-2 kg per week in a healthy way. So? Write it down as well. This way, you can create a monthly weight-loss goal of 4-8kg.
Hold yourself responsible and accountable for reaching that goal. Putting it down on paper is like creating a covenant you have to stick to. Put it up on a wall or the fridge or even at your bedside so it serves as a reminder each day.
While writing a long-term goal is a great start, achieving them requires detailing a number of steps to help get you there. After all, losing 50 pounds doesn’t just happen because you write it down.
2. Make Your Goals Attainable.
The problem a lot of people have is setting unrealistic goals in short amounts of time.
“I want to lose all my fat, build a bigger butt and have abs by my wedding in March!” When your wedding is literally a month away and you’ve never had a fitness regimen prior to your enquiry.
Unrealistic goals set you up for failure. How? Because when you don’t see the results you want fast enough, you’ll get frustrated, and ultimately derail from your long-term goal. Setting an aggressive long-term goal can be counterproductive; you’ll have a better chance of success of actually reaching your target goal if you give yourself the time you need.
Results don’t come overnight, no matter how badly you want something. It takes patience and persistence, and that has to be your approach.
3. Actually Follow Through With Specific Plans.
Lastly, you need to create an action plan for your short-term goals. My online programs are designed to help you structure out your workouts and my nutrition plans are realistic and affordable! Why would you rather spend 25,000 on fat loss pills that promise you false results, than actually 3,500 on a workout plan that gives you everything you need to succeed and maintain that success? Priorities huh?
Having a plan structured and in place allows you to lose 1-2 pounds per week. The plan should fit your schedule and allow you to work out a certain amount of days a week for a given period of time. Be specific about your training plans, detailing how many days and how much time you can commit to.
Did any of these tips help you? Leave me a comment and let me know! Until next time; talk to you soon!
Talk soon,
Sandra