We’ve all said it: “This summer, I’m going to hit the gym and lose 10 pounds.”
And then, to the doubtful mother/sister/friend’s eye roll: “No really! I mean it!”
Don’t sweat it; most people have made that claim before, be it to our friends or to ourselves. And most of the time, we make those claims with sincere, high hopes that this time, this time!, we’ll get rid of that extra weight.
Now that the summer’s over, though, here’s the annoying follow-up question…Did we?
It bites to have to face the truth. Why weren’t we able to lose the weight?
To exercise successfully, three components are crucial.
Realistic Goals: Setting real goals for yourself calls for honesty. You need to have a little chat with yourself to think about your goals and aspirations. Get real.Set your ego aside and assess your capabilities. If you are not a born marathon runner—no problem! You can get there if you start from a place that’s reasonable for where you are right now. If you try to become a marathon runner overnight—you’ll be disappointed. You need to dream big and then set aside your ego. Map out the tiniest baby steps to reach your dreams.
The Connections Paradigm states that a person is made up of a body and soul, each with its own wants and needs. To succeed in this world, the body and soul need to connect and have a healthy relationship. The body is your body, but the soul is your dreamer.
Setting aside your ego doesn’t mean setting aside your dreams. But it may mean grounding them in realism. If you are someone who has no problem accepting where you are and just need help moving further, try leaving your comfort zone in your workout for just a moment or two. Having the courage to try something new, even just once, will make it much easier to try it again.
Positive Self-Talk: Once you’ve mapped out a sensible plan, you’ll need positive self-talk to get you through it.
If you want to succeed, you need to speak to yourself in an encouraging and positive tone. Tell yourself lines like: “I’m going to rock this workout,” and “I have X amount of time, let’s make the most of it.”
Adopt optimistic mantras to encourage yourself. You could also draw on your achievements in your workout thus far to draw strength: “Look at you! You’re doing great-keep it going!” or “Look at how far you’ve come!” Be kind to yourself, but be firm.
Desire to Exercise. The final and perhaps most crucial element of exercise is knowing that you want to do it!
Exercising on a half-empty tank of morale can be torturous. If you don’t really want to be doing it, you’re going to feel like a prisoner of war. Truthfully, many of us don’t want to get off the couch and work out. But we have a choice: we can go with the voice that says “nahh, exercise isn’t for me,” or we can tune into the voice that says “I want to achieve my goals!” If you want success, you have to decide that this is what you want.
That will fuel you to hit the ground running—literally.
Rosmarin DH. The Connections Program: A spiritually-integrated treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Treatment manual; 2013.