6 Things To Do This Year To Make Sure You Hit Your Fitness Goals
Need a little extra support and motivation to reach your goals? Here are 6 things to do this year to make sure you hit your fitness goals.
Hi there! My name is Chantal and I’m the owner of this little site. Welcome!
Not only am I the blogger behind the site, I’m also a mom of two and NASM certified personal trainer.
As you can imagine, I’m super passionate about health. I’m always setting new fitness goals, and always reaching higher.
Related Reading: How to Set Realistic Fitness Goals After Having a Baby
Whether this is your tenth or first year setting fitness-related goals, I want to help you reach them!
I have always said that being a personal trainer is only part fitness, while the rest of it is the job of shrink, friend, and mentor.
(Really, if you’ve ever had a personal trainer before, you know that it can get emotional and intimate in mysterious ways!)
Part of the job is also motivator and cheerleader. And that’s the part I love the most!
Psst! If you need help with nutrition, check out my online nutrition course for weight loss!
By now you probably know that fitness is about so much more than workouts. It’s also about the emotional aspects, like self-awareness and mental health.
You see, it’s my opinion that fitness might sound simple (move more, eat better!) but it’s actually very complex. That’s why there are some very specific things you should do if you want to hit your fitness goals this year.
Anyway – all of this brings me to my first point! So let’s get to it.
6 Things To Do This Year To Make Sure You Hit Your Fitness Goals
1. Address Your Childhood Food & Fitness Trauma
You guys. If you haven’t looked back at your life in regards to unhealthy habits and your relationship with food and your body, it is TIME.
Friends, I am an emotional eater. I have also had a LONG history with depression and wanting something about my body to change.
If I look back at why that is, I can pinpoint some specific sad and vulnerable truths about my life growing up.
Sometimes there are certain people, events, or experiences that really hurt us in terms of emotional eating, body image, and more.
Related Reading: Ways To Encourage A Healthy Body Image In Children
The first one I can think of is basing my self-worth on looks. (I was made to believe that being pretty and skinny was all that mattered.)
The second one is a cultural obsession with food. All of the gatherings in my family have to do with food. Not just that, but if you show up to a Hispanic gathering (my dad is from Chile) and don’t eat, it’s super offensive.
I remember having a lot of pressure to eat!
If we’re being honest, I could go on about what other childhood experiences influenced me to have a poor body image and bad relationship with food.
But I’m choosing to acknowledge them and move forward. Which brings me to the next thing.
2. Quit Choosing to Play The Victim
Okay, I admit that this is a touchy subject, but it’s really important. You get to choose where you draw the lines in your life.
For a very long time, I had a lot of excuses that held me back when it comes to my own fitness goals.
I had to acknowledge the things that have happened to me in life, but consciously choose not to dwell on them.
There’s a difference between accepting parts of your own story and letting them completely define you.
It might be a little bit of tough love, but you need to wake up sis!
Everyone goes through hard things in life. The difference between people who are successful (in business, fitness, and everything else) and people who aren’t is simple!
Successful people let their life experiences drive them and make them better.
So. It’s time to boss up and use your hurt for something better. You can choose to change your life, friend!
PRO TIP: Hire a certified personal trainer or nutrition coach to help you with mindset and accountability!
3. Attitude of Gratitude
This is a great mindset tip that will seriously propel you on your journey. As you keep working on your fitness goals, it’s non-negotiable!
If you really want to hit your fitness goals this year, it’s time to rewire your brain with gratitude.
For example – instead of thinking to yourself, “Man, I’m super upset that I didn’t reach my weight loss goal for the month,” you can think some positive thoughts about what you did accomplish.
In this case, you might think to yourself, “Wow, I’m so happy and grateful that I was able to complete all of my workout goals this month! I’m so glad that I’m getting stronger.”
It does take some practice, but at the end of the day, it’s a great way to change your relationship with your body.
4. Quit Buying Into Diet Culture
This is one of the most important things you can do for your sanity, not just to hit your fitness goals.
Diets are NOT good for most people. I am not just talking about what you eat, I am talking about super-specific and restrictive diets that shame any food group or type.
Super-specific diets are okay when they have been prescribed by a doctor, but I don’t recommend them for the average person who wants to lose weight.
Why?
Because it almost always backfires and it is not typically sustainable.
Mind you, I am talking about juice cleanses, smoothie diets, no and super-low carb diets, etc.
Those things are great as starting points, but they are almost always followed by a bad regression that leaves you feeling weak and defeated.
If you have a history of yo-yo-dieting like I do, you probably know what I mean.
It’s time to heal your relationship with food, focus on balance, and learn to eat healthy without beating yourself up.
Related Reading: 11 Ways To Increase NEAT (And Burn More Calories)
5. Make A Solid Plan
So many people go into a new year with big goals but no plan. That kind of planning will not get you anywhere.
You’ll either sell yourself short each month, or you’ll quit soon after you start because you don’t have the accountability you need.
You should break down your goals into bite-sized chunks (down to the month or even week) to really stay on track. This will keep you from getting overwhelmed, trust me!
For example, if my overall goal for the year was to lose 40 pounds, I’d break it down by month. So, instead of focusing on that big number, I’d focus on the 3.33 pounds that I should lose each month to stay on track.
Next, I’d figure out the most important action steps I’d need to take in order to reach that littler goal. For me, it would probably be:
- Track my daily calories/food intake based on my Total Daily Energy Expenditure
- Meal prep weekly to avoid unhealthy food choices
- Exercise 3 or more times weekly
It’s a pretty solid plan! I could go even further if I wanted to, but you get the idea.
*P.S. You can figure out how many calories you need to consume to lose weight or maintain weight using this calculator.
Related Reading: How To Create A Workout Plan | Beginners Guide
6. Give Yourself Grace
If you’re OVER IT when it comes to having a bad relationship with food or having a poor body image, this is a MUST.
Life isn’t ever going to be fun if you’re constantly restricting yourself or making yourself sore and tired from a ridiculous amount of exercise.
You should be able to eat foods you like, take vacation, and enjoy gatherings without guilt.
It’s time to learn to move on quickly when you overeat, indulge, skip a workout, or have any other small mishap.
Please quit throwing in the the towel (giving up!) after a few mistakes. We all make mistakes.
We just have to keep going.
When you have a mishap involving food or fitness, it won’t help you hit your fitness goals to let the rest of the day, week, or month go to crap.
Give yourself a moment, acknowledge the mistake, and move on. Every day is a new opportunity to be awesome.
That’s it, my friends!
I truly hope that this article helps you as you work to hit your fitness goals this year.
Here are some other fitness articles that might come in handy on your journey:
10 Things to Try When You’re Losing Workout Motivation
75 Healthy Habits That Will Change Your Life
Why I Started Ironwild Fitness
Thanks for reading,
Chantal
