What caught my attention in one of the daily’s this morning was that 3 out of the top 5 New Year resolutions was health related. It started off with being fit to improve health and ended with losing weight. With so much importance given by people on their health, I could not stop myself from writing about how each one of you can create a road map and make this year the best in terms of your health.
The journey of transforming your body from being out of shape to being fit is long and winding but as I always say the journey is more thrilling then the destination. It is prudent to focus on the end destination because one can gather great motivation if one can see with absolute clarity the image of yourself at the end of the journey. By not visualizing you are prone to lose the focus and momentum as there is never a connection maintained between the mind and the body. This according to me is the key, which helps you maintain the course. Well how do I know this, because when I began this journey a couple of years ago. I was obese at 130 Kg with about 25% body fat to the present 95 with about 12-14% body fat which is still not the end destination. I have a long way to go to keep my body fat at single digits which is what I will be working on for the year. So what we are looking at is how each one of you can work on making this year different compared to the bygone ones –
Work on to be motivated: Motivation is one of the most important things to be worked on. Having a vision does help but each one of us are different and hence I cannot give a one glove fits all solution here. Seek what really motivates you and make it your religion per se. For some of you it might be your favorite songs, working with a specific partner or even wearing a particular color It could be just about anything as long as it makes you stick to your goals. Whatever you chose to motivate yourself, customize it for yourself and put it up in the front. You can put it around your mirror, computer screen, in a private diary etc. This is all about what motivates you so don’t worry about what anyone else would think about your choice or music or movie line. What others think truly doesn’t matter and is not important.
Maintain a Hawk’s eye on your food intake: For many of my clients who do not have any time for regular exercise I always make it a point for them to realize that they need to be razor sharp when it comes to their diet. One cannot afford a slip up since there is not much exertion through exercise. It is very important to work on eating healthy by sticking on to whole grains, fresh vegetables & fruits and lean meat only. What needs to be avoided is processed food loaded with Trans fat and sugary drinks.
Be practical while selecting your exercise: For most, the exercise usually chooses them and hence the dropout rate in a gym shoots up within couple of weeks in the New Year. None of us can enjoy doing all the exercises like running, swimming or even weights. Pick what suits you and work on it even if it is for 3-4 times a week to begin with. For most of my clients making time for a regular slot for exercise is next to impossible. Hence I always need to work round this most of the time. So being active @ work or home is the only option and in most of the cases it does bring in phenomenal long lasting changes.
Remember this is a lifestyle change: Once you begin to look at making 2013 as a healthy year then you need to make it clear that it will be a lifestyle change and not just getting into a healthy eating habit or working out at the gym, a couple of times a week. Once you connect with the bigger picture then you will eventually work on making permanent changes in your mind which is what ultimately makes this effective. Never forget the forest for the trees is one statement which always plays in the background for me.
Make it Fun: Make things like workouts, running or just about anything more fun to begin with, since you will not look at it a chore but on the contrary will look at doing it on an everyday basis. One of my clients with who I was working with a couple of years ago also looked at improving her French and made sure she did her work outs in a gym frequented by expats where she could practice her french alongside her exercise. What you perceive as fun might make the big difference in maintaining your motivation in the long run.
Accept that your life will change for the better: When you set out to do a positive thing, do not be surprised that you will eventually notice that your life around is changing for good. During this journey you have to come to grips with the fact that you will be received differently by others, be it at your work or home. Once people around you begin to notice and see the results they will begin to hear you out more. It’s amazing to think that a person’s appearance can change the way people interact with that person but it’s true. I have noticed this myself and it is very impactful “if you know what it means”.
So how do you want to make this year different from all the years gone by with respect to your health is something you would want to think about after going through my Blog.If you feel some of them or all of them does makes sense then would be happy that my thoughts have indeed served its purpose.In case you have a better way of making this year a truly wonderful in terms of working on your health then would love to hear from you on my Facebook Fan Page or coach@satishrao.in