Have you ever thought about organizing your fitness goals? When I tried to lose weight in the past, I failed many times. What helped me succeed this past year being more organized. Here is a quick list of what I kept in check and planned ahead of time:
1. Pre-scheduled workouts. I wrote what to do and what time to do it. After being on my calendar for a few weeks, it became a habit.
2. Planned meals. Yep, it works. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, all were purchased ahead of time . If I planned it, chances were good that stayed focused on my intended meal plan.
3. Plan date nights. I discuss with my husband which night we would plan to go out and then I would go online and check out the menu. Making educated food choices helped me stick to my food guns and the chosen restaurant. Success.
4. Make certain decisions ahead of time. That way, when temptation is dripping or saucing before you, you are strong. As in, ordering salad, but with dressing on the side (dip your fork in the dressing before taking a bite of the salad). Ordering water (liquid calories, unless a good protein shake, are a waste of good calories). Just say no ahead in your mind to butter, mayo and any heavy cream sauce. And if you want a chocolate indulgence, plan it. Tell yourself, I will wait until date night and choose something to share with a date. Save money and calories!
See how easy that was? Planning a little bit ahead of time can save you time, headaches, and a ton of calories. Enjoy life!
Jill Holmes
Website Director
Back to Basics
I realize full well that losing weight is a huge trend right now. It’s what every girl or guy would like to do? In my family, somehow, there is an opposite trend. We come skinny. But that’s not a blessing. Skinny comes with lethargy, comes with run out of steam faster than you want or need, makes it hard to exercise enough to maintain proper muscle mass, heart health, and lung capacity. Everytime I go looking for advice on exercise it comes coupled with information on how to lose weight. Honestly, it’s frusterating. I’m not asking you to change your program for the sake of a few oddballs out there. But please, being fit for the sake of sanity, family, and being able to serve to full capacity can be a goal in and of itself can’t it?
-Ruthann
Hi Ruthann,
I can only imagine your frustration–our society is plagued with obesity, not being thin, so you’re right, that’s a topic not often addressed:)
Because our website is focused on back to basics, we cover only the most general and basic topics that apply to most people. Hopefully, you can address it as a family in a positive and helpful way. I wish you great success:)
Best,
Connie
Hi Connie,
There is a little technique you can use, if you have the courage that will almost guarantee the achievement of fitness goals or other goals. It is based on the idea of “social pressure”.
Think about this; let’s say you have a goal to lose a certain amount of weight or achieve some desired level of fitness. You can set the goal privately and tell yourself, “I am going to achieve this goal by August 1.” On the other hand, you can make the goal public by telling all of your friends and family what you intend to do and even give a date for your desired completion.
As soon as you take that goal public, you move into a different state of mind. No longer are you at the mercy of your own self-discipline. Now you have a much more powerful force dictating your day to day actions and decisions.
Studies have shown publicizing goals with another person make them more likely to be achieved. For example, Researchers at the University of South Carolina found the support and accountability provided by posting to a social networking site made a difference in how much weight people lost.