Staying Committed to Your Fitness Goals

Halloween has passed, Thanksgiving feasts will be served shortly, Christmas is already everywhere you look and before you know it everyone will be shouting Happy New Year! It’s during this whirlwind time of year that people tend to pack on some extra pounds and then make the resolution to get back into fitness on January 1st.

If this is your annual resolution, you know that committing to your health is not easy. There will be times when you won’t want to wake up early to get your workout done, you’ll be sore, you’ll be tired, and that ugly little voice in your head will start telling you that you suck and the workout you’re doing isn’t going to make a difference anyway. (Don’t listen to that voice…it’s just fear speaking.)

There may be times when you wait in line at the coffee shop and feel like ordering that fattening blended coffee drink, even though you know sticking with your unsweetened (preferably black) regular coffee, or you’re driving home and pass a fast food restaurant and think to yourself “One meal from here won’t hurt.”. You may be scared to use a heavier weight than you did last week, because you are afraid you won’t be able to complete your reps. We all struggle with healthy eating. We all get late night cravings (trust me, I’ve written about Pop-tarts calling to me from the cabinet, in the middle of the night), and us woman all crave chocolate and salt simultaneously during a specific week each month. We’re human!

It’s in these moments of weakness, that your commitment to the goals you set are tested. This is why as an accountability coach, I always talk to my clients about why they decided to start a health and fitness program. The stronger the connection they feel to that WHY, the easier it will be to resist the temptations and the feeling of saying “Screw this, I want to sleep in!” When you stick to the commitment you’ve made to yourself, you’ll begin to stand more confidently, feel a renewed sense of pride and you’ll even feel sexier. Staying committed to your goals will help you to discover a true sense of well-being, purpose, and personal worth. You’ll feel even feel energized and happier!

Here are three ways that can help you stay committed to achieving your goals:

1. Post your goals on the mirror.
Posting your goals in a place where you are guaranteed to see them each day will help you to stay focused, motivated, and committed. Your bathroom mirror is the perfect place because you’ll see your goals first thing in the morning and right before you go to sleep at night.(We are brushing our teeth twice a day, right?!) Placing them here will also give you a chance to look at your goals and then yourself, which can be a very powerful thing. For maximum results, include why you started your fitness routine (to have more energy to play with your kids, to feel comfortable in your own skin, to feel more confident, to wow people at your class reunion.).

2. Prepare for the unexpected.
Each morning, or better yet, each night before you go to bed, ask yourself if there are any challenges that may interfere with your daily routine for the next day. Examples of this could be: Are there any lunch meetings or special events at work? How will you handle things if your child wants you to play during your scheduled workout time? What if you’re going out to celebrate a friend’s birthday at a restaurant? For each unexpected event, make a plan to address the challenge, while still staying committed to your fitness and nutrition goals. Of course, there are plenty of uncontrollable circumstances that could happen, but developing a plan to deal with your most common challenges will set you up to succeed with anything that could happen during your day.

3. Keep a daily journal.
There is no doubt that tracking your daily fitness and nutrition effort helps to improve your chance of achieving your goals. However, it is also important to track how much effort you put into each day, as well as how you felt during the that day. When creating your journal entry, ask yourself: “Did I exert every possible ounce of effort to achieving my goals today?” If your answer is yes, great! If your answer is no, write down one thing you can do tomorrow to be better than you were today. Another great question to ask yourself is “How did I feel mentally and physically today?” We all have good days and bad days and you can often see a pattern when you begin to a keep a journal. Spotting the pattern as well as the common denominator can help you to make small changes, which can help you to stay on track and achieve your goals.

Following these three tips can help your level of commitment for fitness and nutrition skyrocket! So as the New Year creeps up and you begin making your resolutions, I want you to really think about incorporating these three tips into your daily routine. They will not only help you to achieve your goals, but they can help you get results that will last!

What are your tips and tricks to staying committed to reaching your goals?