Exciting new goals sound great, they even look amazing as we run them through our mind in full glorious technicolour. But don’t expect the early-stage, euphoric rush, to see you through to the end. As the consistent bump and grind to achieve starts getting you down, rolling up your sleeves and making shit happen – hmmm, sometimes it’s all a bit much.
Just for a moment hang with me, take a step back, look at the progress you HAVE made, truly acknowledge and give a little credit where it’s due. We are so hard wired to focus on what we haven’t achieved, we miss the gold. If you’re behind target, ask yourself whether you set the bar too high? (If you did, maybe we’ve just nailed a perfect pattern for self sabotage.)
One of the biggest reasons for failure is the over-shooting of our expectations, which sets us up for failure when we under perform. The objective was set through a fuzzy lens, fuelled by a hazy mist of fantasy. You were never going to achieve that goal, and now you’re feeling like a failure for not doing what was never going to be done!
The reality is that you are progressing and succeeding, just not as quickly as you’d hoped – you are simply trying to achieve an over ambitious goal – you are not failing. There’s a big difference.
The real key is to under promise and over deliver. By setting mini goals and starting small, we can excite ourselves with consistent over performance. When we feel like a winner, we act like a winner. When we’re steeped in self loathing and evidence of another failure, we talk ourselves into acting out and giving up.
An injury during lockdown was the perfect excuse I needed to become a sofa sloth. No exercise, along with a serious ice cream and pancake habit, has taken its toll on my energy levels, mobility and feel good. Tomorrow I start the 90 day trek back to fitness, I’m not looking forward to it one iota but hey, a girl has to pick up the towel sometime, right?
Starting slow, a gentle Monday Morning Session with a new PT, a fridge confirming my commitment to return to healthy, non processed, foods and a few supplements to help me along. Standing at the base of the mountain looking up at the top, feels like a mighty challenge, so I focus only on my week ahead and being able to stretch, bend, walk and bounce more than I could today. Keeping it easy, clean and kind.
Maybe you’re looking at your thrown towel lying on the floor and have been waiting for a call to get up and get going? Whatever it is you’re keen to achieve over the coming weeks and months, let’s do it. If we start now, by autumn we’ll be in a new place, rocking a new vibe and feeling fabulous about our achievements!
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