4 Musts For Getting Back On Track With Health Goals

You’ve had a phase of perseverance and have been working hard towards your health goals. And now - perhaps there have been stressors, distractions, a holiday away - you find yourself frustrated that you’ve “strayed from the plan” that you’ve been so diligently following. It happens to us all. For me, there are 4 steps I consider musts in reestablishing my former routine and getting back to feeling my best self with my wellness practice. Let’s dive in:

4 Musts For Getting Back To Your Wellness Practice

1. Schedule Time To Feel

   Behavior change is hard… for everyone. While you want to (and should) hold yourself to high standards, let us remember that pressure works like a bell curve (The Yerkes-Dodson Law). If we place no pressure on ourselves our performance wanes, but if we place the entire universe on our shoulders, our performance is equally poor. If we don’t give ourselves grace at all, we’ll become stuck in the cycle of negative self-talk and chip away at the self-esteem we’ve worked hard to establish.

   • Must #1: Allot time in your schedule to feel the frustration and/or worry. This can look like ~10-15 minutes a day where you express the feelings you have around frustrations getting back to your routine:

     • Journaling (writing)

     • Reflecting (thinking)

     • Talking (speaking)

   • The takeaway here is allotting enough time to acknowledge your frustrations so they aren’t considered obsolete (they’re legitimate!) AND ensuring you keep that time within boundary, so these feelings don’t take over 24/7. Think if it like setting an alarm clock for your child’s 20 minutes of nightly reading homework. Once the alarm clock goes off, your child can put the book away and move on with his or her evening.

2. Don’t Just Establish (or Reestablish) Support- Use It

   Knowing you have help is one component. Asking for help is another. We know there are are people in our lives that can provide help, and often we are hesitant or resistant to ask for it. Why? Like point #1, we hold ourselves to these incredibly high standards.

   • Must #2: Ask For Help: Use your support system! Your partner expressing they can come home early to watch the kids? Another caretaker can help with pickup? A colleague is looking for some more work to build their resume? Asking for help and designating tasks is not weak. "We all go through challenges -- some you can see, most you can't” - Michele L. Sullivan (watch her TED talk "Asking for help is a strength, not a weakness" here).

   • The takeaway here is utilizing the support systems you have. It will give you some relief as you work to get your old routines back to normal.

3. Recommit 

   Having an accountability partner is wonderful. So is feeling supported by your inner circle. However, committing to the greater community can be even more impactful.

   • Must #3: Go Public With Your Commitment: studies show that when people go public with a commitment, it strengthens their willpower immensely. This could mean posting about it to facebook, instagram, or sending out a mass text.

   • The takeaway is that the more people you involve and engage in your change journey, the more meaning you will find in following through.

4. Remember Where You Started 

   Success is not linear. Still, reflect on where you’ve come from the very beginning. That is to be celebrated.

   • Must #4: Acknowledge the Progress Thus Far: Focusing on the positive changes that have resulted help shift our mindsets away from the negativity bias we all know (we’re 70% more likely to recall the bad)… so make a conscious effort to recall the good and the positive changes. Putting your headspace back to this place will influence other positive changes like:

     • Remembering Your Strengths

     • Recalling What Made Past Successes Successful

     • Exploring Potential Solutions To Barriers

   • The takeaway is that the more you focus on the positives, the more you’ll envision a positive future of change.

Ultimately, we’re human; the feelings we have about our bodies and minds ebb and flow. If you’re interested in discussing your health needs in greater detail, contact me here and we will find a time to connect, working together to establish your ideal health plan.