Preparing For A Healthy Lifestyle
Before you start the diets and exercises here is how to set goals you can stick to for a healthier lifestyle:
Step One: Settle on the What
What do you want to change? Whether it’s an overall lifestyle change or specifics (lose weight, trim fat, get more muscle, or achieve a fitness goal), you can’t set goals if you don’t know what you want to achieve.
Step Two: Get Specific & Realistic
Many goals fail by not being specific enough. You could say “I’m going to eat healthier this year,” or “I’m going to exercise more,” but what does this really mean? If you don’t get specific, you won’t know when you’ve hit your goals, which is your major motivator.
Secondly, your goals need to be realistic. Weight loss goals need to be achievable (5-10% of body weight), exercise goals should be attainable, healthy eating goals shouldn’t feel like punishment. The more realistic your goal, the easier it will be to attain. Once you reach that goal, you can build on your success.
Step Three: Break it Down
Having a specific goal is great, but if it’s too big, it will feel unachievable, which means the second it feels out of reach you’ll want to abandon it all together. By breaking your goals down, you set small achievements that will help you stay motivated. For example, if your goal is to lose 10 pounds, then losing 2 pounds is your first hurdle.
Step Four: Plan for Setbacks
Everyone has setbacks along the way, look at nearly every pro athlete who ever had an injury. The key is to understand that setbacks happen, and you can come back from them. The second step is to identify what caused the setback. If your healthy eating goal gets set back by unhealthy options, find new healthy options that satisfy your cravings. If your exercise goal is failing, change up your routine.
Step Five: Keep a Record
It can be hard to stay on track and see successes as they happen, so keep track. Even if you’re looking to simply drop pounds as a healthy goal, keep track of exercise and what you eat. Not only will you find small successes (such as trimming inches), you can also identify where there might be room for improvement.
Step Six: Get Help!
You don’t have to tackle your healthy living goals alone – get help! Meal planning, exercise routines, and inspiration are easy to find, affordable, and will increase your chance of success. With a bit of planning and some dedication to your new healthy living goals, you can end on a high note.
If you are looking for guidance with a healthy plant-based diet, look no further than 22 Days Nutrition. They are here to help with Vegan Meal Delivery and plant protein bars and powders. You can pick up a copy of The 22-Day Revolution and The 22-Day Revolution Cookbook at your local bookstore and at Amazon.