There are 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,765 hours, 525,948 minutes, 31,556,926 seconds in a year. So that is how long a New Year’s resolution is supposed to last, right? With the holidays coming up and everyone filling their bellies, most tend to forget about continuing the gift of fitness all year long. It’s easy to say, oh I will get back to it after the holidays, so where does one start in the New Year?
My first resolution
Last year, was the first year that I committed to a New Year’s resolution. I signed up for my first half marathon in Chicago, April 9th. This was quite a challenge for me since I have never done a long distance run before considering I played basketball in high school. What helped me to achieve this goal was establishing a deadline which was the actual race and downloading a training program that helped me stay accountable with my training.
During my training, I got to the point where I felt guilty if I skipped a day. Without the accountability of the program, I don’t know if I ever would have stuck with it. Honestly, the real motivating factor was that I wanted to prove to myself and others that I was capable of completing a distance race. I am very competitive as well so when someone tells me I can’t, I make it a point to prove that I can. I not only accomplished my goal of completing the race, I ran the whole 13.1 miles on ice and finished in 1:53. I was so proud of myself even though my toes cramped up really bad afterwards. This year I look forward to training for another race possibly even a marathon, who knows!
Achieving Your Goals
The whole point of telling you my personal achievement isn’t to get a pat on the back or a gold star, but to let everyone know that if you put 100% effort into something and stick to it with no excuses you can achieve that goal. I didn’t say that it was easy but with my intrinsic motivation and determination to prove to myself that I could do it, along with support from my co-workers, friends and family, made it all possible. Don’t focus on what you can’t do currently. Instead develop a plan on how to prove to yourself that you can eventually.
Start with establishing small goals that eventually lead to a long-term goal. In the fitness world we call these SMART goals. Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely goals that allow you to make this a gradual process so that you don’t put so much pressure on yourself to lose 50 pounds in three months! Proper nutrition, along with 150 minutes of moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise and two full body strength training routines per week allows you to achieve your personal goals without the added pressure. If you fulfill these recommended physical activity requirements consistently there is no reason why you shouldn’t see results. Most of the time, the issue is that not eating enough or too much or not putting in enough effort to achieve results.
Changing Your Mindset
Overall, if you change your mindset from trying to lose weight or gain muscle before you go on your tropical vacation in three months to making this an overall lifestyle change, you won’t have to set a fitness New Year’s resolution every year. If you make this an ongoing resolution rather than just a New Year’s resolution, you won’t have that added pressure to achieve your goals last minute. Give your body the gift of health by including regular physical activity and feeding your body appropriately to achieve your goals every day not just once a year.
We’re Here to Help
At Performance, we have a great team and services to help you throughout the year. If you aren’t sure if you are putting forth the right amount of effort, try the MyZone heart rate wearable. If you are having a hard time getting here, schedule sessions with a personal trainer or commit to a class schedule. Feeling stressed? We have a licensed massage therapist, Abby Kos, to help decrease the muscle tension and get rid of those toxins. Our registered dietitian, Eric Bockelman, is also here to help steer you in the right direction when it comes to nutrition. and if you have other external factors that are hindering your progress maybe having a Health Coach is the right choice for you. Whatever your goals are, it’s ok to ask for help because just a little goes a lifetime. Feel free to email me or set up an appointment to establish your path towards a healthy lifestyle.
Thank you to all of our members for an amazing 2016 and looking forward to seeing you all in 2017. Cheers!
