This time of year is extra exciting for me. As a fitness professional, I get to witness firsthand the renewed commitment and sense of dedication that my clients and other gym-goers seem to posses.
It’s almost as if you can feel the elevated pulse of the collective, it’s potent — especially here in NYC.
Almost everyone I’ve spoken to recently has resolved to get in better shape. Maybe that has something to do with my profession, but it’s definitely one of the more common resolutions to make. Some people set general goals for themselves like losing weight, eating less, working out more. Some formulate specific and measurable plans, like increasing their squat to 225 for 10 or losing 7.5 lbs by March 25th.
And there’s nothing wrong with any of this.
If you’re striving for improvement, I’m behind you, FULLY.
However, since this is my 5th time around for New Years Resolutions as a trainer, I’m no longer as optimistic as I once was. I’ve been through this too many times to believe that willpower is enough to sustain momentum.
You can safely expect to experience one or more of these in the coming weeks:
You will be inconvenienced by your goals
You will make excuses for yourself
You will experience road blocks you didn’t anticipate
You may even reach your finish line, but it might not feel the way you’d imagined it would.
I’m sure you’ve been here before too..
but it’s 2019 and this time will be different. Right?
Well, maybe. I think it can be, if you give yourself the opportunity to change perspectives for a second, before it’s too little, too late.
Behavior is driven, NOT by your conscious mind (think will and determination) but by your subconscious (think auto-pilot actions). Your subconscious beliefs are not readily available on the surface, but can be accessed — and I see this as necessary practice if you’re looking to follow through on the goals you’ve set for yourself.
We can get into the subconscious and your ability to alter it and your experience of the world (casual, I know); but for now — here are some action steps I use when I’m looking to dive deeper and ensure I’m setting myself up before I begin:
get specific
make a list of everything you want; having multiple goals and resolutions is great!
add all the details that you can think of
don’t judge anything you come up with
bring in the feelings
Define how you would feel if you were to accomplish each goal
(I like to sit quietly with my eyes closed to get a better feel for the answer to this)
Find your why
Why does doing this matter to you?
Is this goal a stepping stone to something bigger?
Who are you doing this for?
Are you trying to prove something? What is holding you back from feeling complete as you are?
reconsider your path
Will your goals actually illicit the feelings you’ve just uncovered and defined?
Will they help you achieve your deeper objectives?
Is your outcome guaranteed if you stick to the plan?
Are your goals dependent on external circumstances that are out of your control?
define the experience
Uncover the full spectrum of sacrifices you will need to make to get what you want. Are you willing to endure these?
Evaluate your resources — like time, energy, finances, etc. Do you have what you need to be comfortable and enjoy the experience of going after what you want? Is it a good time in your life for this right now?
Revise + adapt + update
Set new goals, start over, or get started on your endeavor
Change your mind. There’s no shame in deciding that what you thought you wanted isn’t the perfect fit right now.
Remind yourself that you are in control of your timeline. You can start, restart, hit pause, do whatever you want!
Revisit and reevaluate often