Written by: Rachel Sewell, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
It’s that time of year when many of us are looking back over the last 12 months. Evaluating; what went well, what didn’t go so well and did we achieve everything we wanted? All to help us set our intentions for the new year.
We then start taking those difficult, initial steps towards our goals but it’s not long before problems begin to arise. The initial excitement and motivation begin to wear off. We find reasons to give up; ‘I don’t have the time’, ‘it’s too hard’, ‘I’ve missed one day, may as well not bother now!’ Our inner critic then chimes in on our perceived failure; ‘of course you didn’t follow through, you never do’ or ‘failed again, just like last year and the year before that, you’ll never change!’
But just because that may have happened in the past doesn’t mean it has to be that way now. You get to decide how you want your 2022 to be!
To help you make 2022 a success here are some tips you can try to help you stay on track towards your goals this year:
1. Get clear on your “why”.
This is key to helping you succeed and create lasting change. There are going to be moments when your motivation is lacking, you’ve had a bad day and you have every excuse under the sun not to follow through. This is where truly knowing your “why” is so beneficial. It can help remind you why you’ve decided to set the goal in the first place. To gain clarity on your “why” ask yourself; how will it benefit my life and the lives of others if I make that change and achieve it? For instance, if your goal is to lose x amount of weight, what will having that do for you? Will you feel more confident? Will you be able to be more active and play with your kids? Will you be in less pain? Take some time and have a think.
2. Make small gradual changes.
Too many of us set our new years resolutions and try to change everything all at once. This not only reduces the likelihood of us following through and succeeding. But it can also be detrimental to the body, especially when it involves trying to change too much around our health. If you haven’t exercised in years but then commit to working out every day with no rest then an injury is more likely to happen. Your body just isn’t used to exercising that much. Instead, when starting your new year's resolution make small gradual changes and build up from there. Maybe go to the gym twice a week first and then up it to 3-4 times a week after a few weeks. You’ll soon be where you want to be!
3. Focus on yourself and not others.
It’s so easy to fall into the comparison trap, especially if we know people close to us who have the same or very similar goals to us. The key thing to remember is that everyone is at different points in their journey so it does us no good to compare and despair! Instead, choose to focus on yourself and how you can be better than who you were yesterday.
4. Accept you are likely to fall off tack at some point.
There are going to be times when you fall off track, sometimes intentionally and other times not because…well, life just happens! There will be things that we just can’t predict that will stop or prevent us from following through and that’s ok. It doesn’t mean you have failed because you haven’t managed to follow through every single day and that you should quit. Rather, it’s just a little, tiny bump in the road and you can get back on track whenever you want.
Remember even if you haven’t managed to follow through in the past, this year can be different! Keep taking those small steps towards your goals every day, you’ve got this!
Rachel Sewell, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Rachel Sewell is a Health Coach accredited by the UK Health Coaches Association. After 2 sporting injuries in 2019, Rachel experienced an identity crisis. Feeling stuck and lost she eventually decided to take her health and life into her own hands, improving them significantly. It was this that inspired her to become a Health Coach. Rachel is passionate about helping those who are feeling stressed, overwhelmed and lacking in self-belief to gain clarity, calm and confidence in their lives. She wholeheartedly believes that anyone can improve their health no matter how stuck they feel because she managed to do it.
