Living life without health and wellness goals is like driving to a new destination without a road map. Yes, you could wing it but the chances of you getting there safely are small.
I’m sure you’ve heard of the well-known adage health is wealth. What do we have without our health? Doctor’s appointments, bags of medications, the inability to move easily and to achieve the things we want to achieve, a life full of illness. That doesn’t sound appealing, does it? On the other hand, health gives us a ticket to live life on our terms unencumbered by the shackles of disease.
Many of us make health-related resolutions, such as to eat healthily, stop drinking or join the local gym. While it is common to set lofty goals to achieve those resolutions, experts say that setting smaller goals could enable us to have better results.
What are goals?
A goal is your target. It’s the desired outcome that you hope to attain. Goals have a definite and precise endpoint. You can place a timeframe on them. You can set yourself both short-term and long-term goals.
To make sure that your goals are defined and reachable, each one should follow the SMART model and should be:
- Specific (simple, sensible, significant).
- Measurable (meaningful, motivating).
- Achievable (agreed, attainable).
- Relevant (reasonable, realistic and resourced, results-based).
- Time-bound (time-based, time-limited, time-sensitive).
Here are some tips to help you stick to your goals:
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Keep things simple
To increase your chance of success, don’t feel that you need to overhaul everything you feel is wrong with your life in one go. Chances are, you’ll quickly get overwhelmed and feel frustrated that you’re not getting anywhere.
You’re more likely to succeed if you concentrate your efforts on just one or two areas and do them well. Pick one main area, such as losing weight or quitting drinking and focus your energy and efforts solely on this.
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Set yourself bite-size goals
“Small steps are achievable and are easier to fit into your daily routine,” says James O. Hill, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. “They are less overwhelming than a big, sudden change.”
As Jim Kwik says: “inch by inch is a cinch, yard by yard is too hard”
One way to stay committed is to break down your health goals into mini-goals that help you to see your progress more easily. Ideally, this will involve goals that can be measured.
If you’re planning to lose weight, set a target for how much weight you’ll aim to lose each week. Or if you’re aiming to increase your intake of leafy green vegetables, aim for at least one serving every day.
Once you’ve broken your goals down into small chunks, make a point of checking in with yourself regularly to see how you’re doing with them.
If you can see yourself making progress, there’s more chance that you’ll keep working towards achieving the bigger picture. As you make progress, you may need to tweak your mini-goals to help you get there easier.
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Reward your progress
The great thing about mini-goals is the opportunity to give yourself an incentive to keep going whenever you make progress towards the bigger health goal. Just make sure it’s not something that will ruin your hard work to date.
No sweet treats if you’re trying to be healthier or lose weight! Think of some fun things you can do to celebrate your progress like a massage or even a new dress to show off your weight loss.
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Accept that slip-ups happen!
Health and wellness goals can be a challenge to stick to and most people will have setbacks. Let’s face it, it’s not realistic to think that it’s all going to be plain sailing when you’re making big changes to your lifestyle.
If you encounter a setback on your journey, it’s not a sign that you’re failing or that you should give up on your goals. Just pick yourself up from where you left off and keep on going. I’m sure that you will still be further along the path than when you started.
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Clarify the reason for your health goals
You have indeed set some health and wellness goals. But what is the reason behind this? Do you want to be healthier or are you doing it with some other motive in mind?
If there is a mental fear, insecurity, body image issue or something similar, it is better to address this first. Your mental health is as important as your physical health.
By following these tips and by setting SMART goals means that you can clarify your ideas, focus your efforts, use your time and resources productively and increase your chances of sticking to your health and wellness goals.
For help with setting your health and wellness goals contact Marcelle at Enlighten My Health by clicking on this link http://bit.ly/callwithMarcelle
Resources:
https://www.wingstosoaronline.com/difference-between-goals-and-resolutions/.
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/smart-goals.htm
Medical Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. For medical advice always consult your physician. The information provided in this blog is based on the best knowledge of the author at the time of writing and we do not assume liability for the information within this blog, be it direct or indirect, consequential, special, exemplary or other damages