Looks Like We're on the Right Track!

I was reading my Shape magazine during a workout yesterday and came across an article titled "Change your life - for good". It listed 5 things that could help you accomplish the goal of living a healthy lifestyle, and I was please to see that we are doing most of them. I've listed them here for a good reminder of our big picture goal as we go into the weekend.

1. Watch your wording: Be more specific when creating a goal, instead of "I'm going do more exercise this year", say "I'm going to work out at least 30 minutes, 3 times a week".

2. Build your case: Make pros & cons for your resolution, for example with the getting exercise goal, list as many pros as possible (weight-loss, more energy, etc.) and any cons (things that might hinder getting it done). Seeing that it has more pros than cons will help be a motivator, which we could all use more of :)

3. Set up incentives: Reward your stuff for the small and big stuff. It doesn't have to be expensive, but if had a goal to bring your lunch to work every day for a week, maybe get yourself a new color of nail polish or something that you might not get at your regular grocery shopping trips.

4. Rally support: Research shows that you are more successful when supported by others. We are doing this already, so great for us! Feel free to contribute anything to this blog to motivate each other :)

5. Plan ahead for slip-ups: It's always a good idea to write down, or know your weaknesses, so that you can plan on how to address them if they come up. For example if you know that you tend to "throw in the towel" for the day or week if you eat one bad thing, have a plan to do something to get you back on track, like go for a walk, or write down what you will eat for the rest of the day.