It’s January. Early in the year.
I bet you’ve worked your ass off on that New Year’s resolution. You’ve been good for the first three weeks, but maybe now you’re not seeing the results you’re hoping for.
It’s not easy when Jim has a birthday at the office, or the colleagues go out for a drink after work. I get it.
But it’s time to forgive those slip ups. In fact, don’t even think of them as mistakes. Ultimately that will lead to guilt, shame and the feeling of ‘oh well screw it’.
In order to stay on track, can you let it go and start again tomorrow? Work on the momentum that you’ve achieved for the past couple of weeks and let the next day be your focus.
Studies show that holding on to the negative feelings you may have expressed during that moment of indulgence could be worse than the snack itself!
Be the change
Setting yourself up for success is crucial in maintaining your goals for 2019. Come up with a plan to works for you. Make your meals the night before so you’re not hungry the next day. Get off social media a little earlier so you’re not staring at the phone while trying to get to sleep. Try and turn off the tv in the bedroom a little earlier. Without even a little bit of a plan, it’s easy to fall off track.
Try and harness the feeling around your motivation. What inspired you to do that resolution anyway? Was it to feel better? Sleep better? Be stronger? Stop being so angry? Replay that in your mind.
Remember, that brief satisfaction that you’d feel for indulging or ignoring your big goal goes away, almost immediately after it’s gone. Practice small measures of self-control. That may include substituting sweet foods for fruit, or a cup of tea.
Maybe if you have a salty craving, drink a glass of salt water instead. And believe it or not, but leaving the room and talking a 5-minute walk around the block helps a lot of people forget that craving all together.
Gratitude for what you do have
Something to remember though: if you’re chasing a dream or a desired outcome, you may become more stressed if you don’t get a perfect version of it (what is perfect anyway?). So try and practice gratitude along the way.
- “I’m so grateful that I was able to afford that cup of coffee today”
- “I’m so grateful that I’m able to get outside and walk in clean fresh air”
- “I’m so grateful that my partner is supportive of my decisions to limit my drinking”
- “I’m so grateful I can turn to my family when I need help”
They don’t need to be huge, but reminding yourself of what you do have versus what you want can go a long way in allowing yourself to forgive. Try to do at least 3 per day.
It’s okay. You don’t have to have the answers. You don’t always need a solution. So start small and let your small habits snowball into big ones.