This Year is Going to be Different I Promise

If you are like most of us, every year you set goals or make promises to yourself that this year you will change. This list usually includes such things as a clean, organized, house, going to church, and of course, exercising regularly to change the way you look and feel. Most of us set these goals and what happens? We fail. How can you make this year different? First, stop feeling guilty about the past. What's done is done and you have to move forward toward trying to be who you want to be now. Today. Excluding those people whose livelihoods hinge on being fit or you are obsessive about fitness to the point of approaching clinically insane, the rest of us are going to ebb and flow with our workout routines. I have spent most of my adult life in the fitness industry and my level of fitness rises and falls many times of the course of the year. The solution is to accept that you will have highs and lows and try to maximize the highs and minimize the lows. For all you hear and read about how to stick with an exercise plan, this really sums it up. Another thing you hear about is setting goals. Why doesn't it work? Because goals have to be specific and concrete you have to have a monitoring process of keeping on track with your goals. Simply reading them over every day before you go to work is a huge step in the right direction in terms of monitoring your goals because if you write something down and stick it in a drawer, it is unlikely to resonate with you for long. All of this assumes that you have to write down your goals or resolutions. There is something about the act of writing things down that solidifies the goal and makes it more real. You are also able to then visualize the goal anytime you look at your list. You should include both long-term, or larger, goals as well as short-term, or more attainable goals on your list. Next, breakdown your long-term goals into several short-term goals. For example, if you want to lose 50 pounds in 2008, set your short-term goals of losing 5 pounds each month. Next, prioritize your goals. If you have a long list of goals, you will need to put them in some type of order of importance. Look at your list of goals frequently, at least once a day. This will keep you focused on your goals. You will then be able to cross off the goals reached, and we all know how much fun it is to scratch something off of a list! This process of crossing off accomplished goals will allow you to see your progress and provide you with reinforcement...something we all need. Lastly, looking at your goals regularly will lead to reevaluating your goals. If your initial goal was to workout twice a week, after meeting this goal for 8 weeks, you may decide to now workout three times a week since twice a week had become an easily attainable goal. If you follow these easy steps with goal setting, you are sure to be more successful this year than in previous years. So, with the start of 2008 here, I wish you great success with your personal, professional and of course, fitness related goals! Make 2008 your year...and get started today! Don't procrastinate on changing your life...there is no day like today!