As we embark on the second month in the New Year, take some time to reflect on your resolution. Has it changed? Are you on track? Has it taken a new direction? Have you accomplished some of it? All of it? Many people make the mistake to committing themselves to a resolution but then never tracking their progress. Either it happens, or it doesn’t (and usually, it doesn’t) – there is no in between. A huge part of reaching success with a resolution is to hold yourself to it, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t adjust it. This is not meant to give yourself a way out, just to make sure that you can reach your goals. For example, if you had planned to lose a certain amount of weight in the month of January and it didn’t happened, don’t give up on it. Come up with a plan to make it happen in February. But don’t just push it back – reflect on why it didn’t happen. Maybe it was too big of a resolution for just one month. If so, try spreading it out over 2 months or more. People always seem to be in such a rush to complete their resolutions, but accomplishing a goal or making a lifestyle change doesn’t happen over night. Give yourself time to reach the finish line.
This is why quick fixes never work. They are only made to give you immediate results, not lasting, healthy changes. Patience may be the hardest part of working towards a goal, but if it was easy, everyone would be doing it. Changing your habits not only takes time, but it also takes a lot of strength. Not just the physical strength to exercise, but also mental strength to stay on track and motivate yourself. It can be exhausting to constantly have to think about what to eat, when to exercise and to keep yourself from going back to old habits, but the strength you build and the amazing things you accomplish because of it will be just a rewarding as reaching your goal weight. Fad diets and quick weight loss solutions make you drop pounds but they don’t improve your lifestyle the way getting healthy does.
If you’re feeling stuck with your resolution, try breaking it down and making it more specific. Instead of just saying you want to lose a certain amount of weight or you want to “get healthy”, make it more precise. Try making tangible goals, like working out 3 days a week or cutting back on a certain food or drink you consume often. The more vague a goal is, the harder it is to achieve. It may seem like the more open-ended an objective is, the easier it is to accomplish because there are so many ways it can be fulfilled, but this will actually work against you. The same way that you decide the road to take before you drive anywhere, you need direction to be able to follow through on your resolution. Always have a plan, get as specific as possible, and stick to it!
2015 is only just beginning…Make it count!
~ Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
