Archive for the ‘setting goals’ Category

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What Are You Working Towards?

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Every once in awhile I’ll rerun this posting. It’ll help keep me on track, and for those of you cheering me on, it’s anoGirl at Finish Linether opportunity to keep me honest.

I know what I’m working towards:
Running the More Magazine
2010 Half-Marathon.

How do I know that I’ll actually do it? I’m using a technique that practically guarantees success:

I’m simply telling everyone I know that I’m doing this race. And I just told you!

Here’s why this works:

  • saying it aloud makes it seem real
  • telling others makes me accountable to them
  • people ask for updates on my progress and that renews my enthusiasm
  • now that I’ve told everyone, I’ll feel like an idiot going back and saying I’ve chickened out

Having something specific to work towards also allows me to plan. Once I know where I want to go, I’m able to outline the steps to get there and just start walking. For this race, I’ve downloaded specific training plans that I’ve added to my calendar so I know exactly what I have to do and when. Now it’s just one foot in front of the other, literally and figuratively.

Over the years, I’ve used this strategy again and again with great success: enrolling in graduate and culinary schools, hiking the Grand Canyon, and, most recently, taking Italian classes.

What are you working towards? Click to comment.

As they say in Italy: In bocca al lupo!

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It’s Your Choice

Monday, November 9th, 2009

fork in road sign

I’m finding that the concept of “choice” is popping up all over the place lately.

On a recent episode of The Biggest Loser, one of the contestants lost more weight than he expected to. He attributed his success, in part, to a decision he made:
“I’m ready to choose my direction instead of letting my direction choose me.”

Choice came up as I evaluated the progress of some of my current weight loss clients. One in particular was dropping weight effortlessly, one was fighting the process all the way. A mutual friend of the successful client said “He’s doing so well because he made a choice to succeed.”

And in this week’s blog entry for a client, I wrote about choosing between eating everything that comes your way during the holiday season, and prioritizing your goals.

Remember that you always have a choice: to reach your health goals or to eat something that doesn’t support them. Choose your goals as often as you can, and nothing will be able to stop you.

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If You’re Doing It, Don’t Quit

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

running up hill

This is my new rule. Brand new. I had to come up with something to get me up a hill I encountered during a recent run.

Man, I did not want to run up this hill. It came at the end of a few miles already logged, and I really wanted to walk. I knew, though, I’d be disappointed with myself, so something had to happen.

I told myself You’re doing it! (Just like I tell my clients when they lose sight of how well they’re doing). Then I added a corollary: If you’re doing it, you can’t quit. I immediately cursed the part of my brain that came up with this, because now I had to run up the hill.

Which I did.

Afterwards, I was grateful for being able to talk myself up the hill.

Ask yourself: What are you doing? And if you’re doing it, you can’t quit.

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