In the Bible there is a parable of a man that builds his house upon sand and another who builds his house on a rock. When the storm came the man on the rock still has a house but the man who built on the sand was washed away. It is the same with lifestyle change. If you just jump in and build your program without planning it out you will yet again be washed away in the waves of disappointment and failure. If you take the time to set goals, plan your meals, exercise correctly and monitor your progress you are going to stand firm on that rock of success. So let’s start building!
“You seldom get what you go after unless you know what you want” Maurice Switzer
Let’s Talk About GOALS Baby!
I have found that people who set their goals simply as “try to lose weight” usually don’t. Why? Because goals need to be S.M.A.R.T.
· Specific
· Measurable
· Achievable
· Realistic
· Time Specific
Losing weight can definitely be part of your overall goal but you also need to have small short-term goals, as well as, specific, measurable long term goals. One of the key things you need to do when setting goals is not to include the word “try”. It is not I will “try” to walk three times this week. It should be…I “will” walk three times this week and I am committed to doing so. You need to be committed to change and “try” is not being committed. Saying you “will” do what you must to make it happen, not letting anything gets in your way.
I have a client that works out at 5am in order to get home, dressed, feed the kids and get them off to school before she goes to work herself. This client knows that if she waits until she gets home to “try” and workout, most likely she will not. This is the type of commitment level that you must have. Maybe you know 5am is not feasible so just be committed to 6pm after work.
Short Term Goals
Let’s talk about short-term goals. These are the daily or weekly goals that are extremely important to your overall success. They need to be S.M.A.R.T. and you need to write them down and post them in a place you will be constantly reminded of what your mission is. I recommend on the fridge door or bathroom mirror.
Short-term goal example:
Week 1:
I will walk 3 times this week and drink a full glass of water with every meal.
Week 2:
Continue with last week’s goals, limit myself to 1 fast food meal this week, and replace all soft drinks with water.
Week 3:
Continue as above, take a fitness class, hire a personal trainer or try an at home workout video, Replace 3 high fat/calorie items on my grocery list with low fat/calorie alternatives (fruits, vegetables, yogurt, pretzels, etc).
Week 4:
Same as before but change all high fat meal to lean alternative (lean beef, turkey, chicken, fish, etc) and add one serving of raw vegetable to my lunch four days this week.
I think you get the idea. Each week you should be making a healthy change. Before long you will have weaned off the old ways and be on the way the way to a leaner, healthier you. If you fail to reach a goal then keep that same goal the next week until the new healthy habit is set in place.
Long Term Goals
Long term goals are just as important as short term goals. Long term goals are the big picture and keep the overall focus of your mission. It is very important not to set yourself up for failure by setting unrealistic goals. You should not set a weight loss goal of 30 pound in two months. If you drop that kind of rapid weight, it is dangerous and will not be permanent. Besides, if you meet your goal sooner than expected you can just create a fresh goal to keep you motivated.
Long-term goal examples:
· I will lower my cholesterol to ____________.
· I will lower my blood pressure to __________
· I will lose _____lbs (4-5 lbs a month is safe weight loss) by my high school reunion.
· I will lose _____% body fat.
· I will drop from a size 18 dress to a size 14 or go from a size 42 pant to a size 38.
Motivational Goals
You should also set motivational goals. These goals are much less specific but are just as important as short and long-term goals. These are the things that aren’t measurable to anyone but you and are deep reasons for your desire for lifestyle change. Visualize your success!
Motivational goals examples:
· I want to be able to climb the stairs with getting out of breath.
· I want to be able to run and play with my kids/grandkids.
· I want to be the first one in my family to break the obesity cycle.
· I want to gain self confidence.
· I want to live pain free.
· I don’t want to be embarrassed of my appearance any longer.
· I want to be able to prove to everyone that I can change.
When you reach your goals set new ones! Always!
BUILD A JOURNEY JOURNAL
This is a very valuable tool in are your lifestyle change process. This is more than just a food log, it is how you are going to understand and recognize the events, people and situations that sabotage your success. Think about it… at noon you ate a big lunch (giant salad from Applebee’s) with your co-worker, 2pm and you grab a Cappuccino and hand full of Hershey Kisses. At first you may think “a salad is healthy” and “coffee isn’t so bad and it’s only a Kiss”. When you log this meal in your Journey Journal you find that the salad ended up having more calories and fat that a Big Mac and fries. The Cappuccino (not coffee) and Kisses event happens 5 days a week costing you 1900 calories and 105 grams of fat a week! Yikes! The little stuff adds up.
The Journey Journal allows you to see what time of day you’re “blow-it moments” take place and helps you recognize unhealthy patterns in your diet. I had a client that was working out like a mad woman but not seeing any major change in her weight or shape. I had her start a Journey Journal and after a week realized she was eating huge amount of peanut butter. I had mentioned that in moderation this is a healthful snack. What she heard was “it’s good for you so eat tons of it”. I also found that because she was skipping breakfast it was causing her to be famished and overeat at lunchtime.
Another great benefit of logging your meals is that it creates an instant since of accountability. It’s one thing to eat a Twinkie and a whole other thing to actually have to write down that you ate a Twinkie. Chances are you won’t eat it if you have to write it down. I know what you are thinking “I just won’t write down the bad stuff”. This attitude is the very stuff I was speaking about at the beginning of this book. YOU ARE NOT READY FOR CHANGE if you think this way! You need to seriously step back and re-access your motivation and commitment to lifestyle change.
The Journey Journal needs to list following:
- · The date, day of the week
- Food and quantity consumed
- · Time of meal and who ate with you
- · How you felt before and after eating
- · Total calories, protein, carbs and fat (optional)
- · Exercise type, intensity (1-10 perceived exertion scale), duration
So basically you are logging your behavior, intake and expenditure. If you break it down to the ridiculous… take in enough to keep the body functioning and burn off all the other stuff. When you take in more than your body needs the excess cannot be burned off and you become human storage facility. Don’t turn into U-Store-It, monitor your intake and burn off the excess!
VISUALIZE YOUR SUCCESS
People learn in different ways: by touch, sight, hearing and doing. It’s the same way when learning what works to motivate you. Some like to listen to motivating audio tapes while working out, others like to take group exercise classes so they are surrounded by people just like them who have similar goals. Others need to see pictures that remind them of where they want to be physically and that motivate them to reach their goals. (We won’t get into people who are motivated by touch…eeewww yuck!).
A great tip I learned from the Body for Life plan by Bill Philips was to surround your self with visual motivation. I bought a simple binder from the office supply store to keep my Journey Journal pages, exercise or nutritional info, my weight and body fat logs or anything else that I needed to see on a daily basis. On the front of this binder was a clear protective pocket where you can put pictures of people that motivate you, your goals, a particular reward that you will give your self if you reach your goals or quotes that inspire you. Seeing these things on a daily basis will help re-affirm where you want to be and motivate you towards lifestyle change.
“BUT THE REFRIGERATOR IS CALLING ME…DO YOU HEAR IT?”
You’re sitting on the couch, watching TV, minding your own business and then you hear it! You try to ignore it by turning the TV up louder but it doesn’t stop…there it is again! It’s the fridge calling you, tempting you eat the kids’ leftover mac-n-cheese. Or maybe it’s that tub of ice cream your husband insists you keep stocked in the freezer…or else. Whatever the temptation may be YOU HAVE TO BE STRONGER than it!
You need to find alternative behavior for when these moments come around. Take a walk or call a supportive friend – but most importantly…get your mind some place else. If you don’t, the fridge will keep calling and calling and calling…until you cave.
There are quotes throughout this article that you can use for motivation. Write them on small pieces of paper and stash in places you look often. Here are a few more quotes:
“The secret of success is focus of purpose.” Thomas Edison
“It’s the moment you think you can’t that you realize you can” Celine Dion
“The major quest in life is not what you are getting, but what you are becoming” Dave Ramsey
“Never eat more than you can lift” Miss Piggy
SETTLE DOWN WILL YA
Go, go, go! That is the language we seem to know these days. We need to get moving but we also need to know when to settle down and BE STILL. Taking time, if only five minutes, to pray or meditate could be the thing that puts you in the right mindset for lifestyle change. Sitting quietly and thinking about the day ahead, clearing the mind of the negative stuff from the day before and seeking guidance from God is a wonderful way to start the day. So you are not the God type? Well, I could say a lot about why you should trust in God to help you through this but let me just say, “What do you have to lose?” Prayer is not hard and there is no right or wrong. Just speak your heart.
“You create your opportunities by asking for them” Patty Hensen (Chicken Soup for the Soul writer).