‘Tis the season for resolutions! Big or small, short or long, everyone has them. The majority of our resolutions include weight loss, being more active, eating better, spending less, and checking off bucket list items. These goals usually last for a week or two, and then people either fall off the bandwagon or lose sight of what’s to come. Maybe their schedule got too busy? Or perhaps their goals were simply not realistic. Help yourself by making specific goals, ones that are measurable and attainable for yourself. These could be an achievable weight loss goal, budget, certain amount in savings, or traveling. It’s okay to have a big goal or two, but be sure to include some short-term goals that you can achieve quickly to help you to feel more accomplished throughout year.
Setting a goal to lose weight is great, but it needs to be specific. Answer your who, what, when, where, why, and how, and be sure it’s realistic and attainable. If your goal is to go to the gym five days a week before work, it’s easy to make up excuses for yourself “I have to take the kids to practice,” “I’m too tired,” or “I’ll do it after work.” Life happens, but making an attainable goal for yourself will not only give you a sense of accomplishment but help you stick to it. If you go from not working out at all the year before to planning five days a week, you might not stick to it. Make the change and say you’ll work out three times a week instead or hit those 10,000 steps. Make attainable goals for yourself because they will pay off in the long run! If your goal is to workout five times a week, start out with 3, and once you get into that groove, if you feel like you can stick to a 4th or 5th day add it! It’s better than what you were doing last month!
Small goals such as hitting 10,000 steps in a day can lead to huge changes. If you don’t have a Fitbit or an Apple Watch most phones have a step tracker built in. This relatively small goal of 10,000 steps a day helps you burn an extra 400-500 calories. Add up all of those calories in a week and you’ve burned an extra 2800-3500 calories! A pound of fat is approximately 3500 calories, which means you can lose about a pound a week, just by hitting your daily step goal! Add that up over the course of a month or a year and it feels a lot better (and so do you)!
Stay tuned for part two on saving money and eating healthier in 2018!