Thursday, December 30, 2010

Tip (Lucky) 7: New Years Wishes

we all wish for it.
year after year after year since we realize we don't look as good as we would like to.
so we say it to ourselves, to a friend/spouse, or tack it on a post-it on the wall:
"I want to lose 100 pounds this year."
and what happens?
we pig out before new years, saying "once January first hits- no more of this!"
and after the year starts,
we're good for...maybe two weeks, maybe a month,
and then we go right back to our old habits.
and not only do we usually gain all the weight loss back,
we usually end up adding on extra pounds before the year is over.
and then the cycle starts again, for the next new years.

Why does this happen? Why do grand new year's wishes become dust in the wind, blowing away in may?
Why? Why? Why?
two big fat reasons, and im about to tell you them.


First,
we put off beginning our journey until a very important day.
this does many things, including giving us a license to pig out the days or weeks beforehand (and very often we do. i know i have!), and it also puts alot of pressure on us to start strong and stay strong, which can be a dangerous double-sided sword: we can either start it and stick with it obsessively, or (for MOST of us!) when we have a slip-up, or a "bad" day, we entirely give up until another major date to start (or worse- next new years!).

Second,
we set our goals unrealistically high- and often unattainably so.
this means when we have a slip-up, or even worse- when we see the scale slow or stop, we give up because we feel that we are a hopeless cause. we feel that we're just meant to be fat.
which isn't true!!!!!
everyone can improve themselves! its about physical fitness and feeling good- not necessarily a stupid number on a scale.

so all that brings me to today's tip, one of the most important!

TIP 7: Every day counts. Start TODAY!!! Not tomorrow, not new years, not your birthday, not monday. NOW.

Every day counts. 


Your life is a collection of days, organized into weeks, which are formed into months, which quickly and quietly become years.

Your life is today. It is not yesterday. It is not tomorrow.

Yesterday may have brought you to this unhappy weight, but tomorrow cannot do anything to help you unless you begin to help yourself today.

If you have a bad day, start over again tomorrow, or just eat better for the rest of the day. Making excuses and putting off starting (or returning to) your weight-loss journey will only hurt you in the end. Just because you slipped up and had an unhealthy lunch doesn't mean you can eat a dozen doughnuts after dinner because you say you're going to start your new diet plan on monday. Hold yourself accountable for your mistakes, and work hard to fix them, and prevent them from happening again. Don't beat yourself up though- we're all human, and in the end, your choices are your choices. Ultimately, you are the one who decides where you go and what you do with your life. If you choose to pig out and watch tv, the nobody can stop you, but realize the path the couch-slouchers take often leads them to resemble their couches.

Make little goals for yourself, and feel proud when you accomplish them.

The idea of "New Year's Resolutions" is hope. Hope to move forward, hope to change something we're unhappy with. We put into our heads that we have a whole, fresh, new year to start with, and we want to start it off good.

So start today, and every day of your life with hope. "I hope i can make decisions today that will change me into the person i know i should be." "I hope today that i stick to my plans of working out for an hour." "I hope that i don't give into the cookie stand at the mall today." "I hope i make the right choices so that when im laying in bed reflecting on my day i am happy and relieved instead of guilt-ridden and heavy-hearted."

As big as your wishes are, you need the daily hope and work to accomplish them. Work hard today, work harder tomorrow, and one day you will see the reflection in the mirror as the one you've been dreaming of.

This year, i wish for all of you to have hope for yourselves. :)

Just Another Whale,
MyzzLyzz

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