What Was Your New Year's Resolution?
Last year, I made a New Year's Resolution to lose 15 pounds over the next year.
What Did You Do To Keep Your New Year's Resolution?
I started an exercise regime, but I started out very slowly and just built on my routine week by week. I think they say that it takes 21 days to make a new habit, but I think it took a little longer than that for me. The first couple of months were difficult, because I kept trying to make excuses to get out of my workouts.
I also adjusted my eating habits, but I also took a slow approach to this. I still allowed myself to eat the foods I love, I just ate a little less at every meal. Over time, I found myself not just eating smaller portions, but also making healthier food choices.
In the end, I didn't quite reach my goal - I only lost 12 pounds. But I feel a whole lot healthier and I've established some great fitness and eating habits that I plan to maintain.
Tips and Tricks
- Break up your big goal into smaller sub-goals. For example, I broke up my weight loss goal so that I lost a certain number of pounds by certain dates.
- Keep a journal. Don't obsess about it, but write down your progress once in a while, or clip out inspirational articles, quotes, pictures and place them in your journal. When your feeling bummed about your goal, you can look through your book and get revved up again.
