Oh…. The power of the little things. The little things that we tend to skip by or ignore when in reality we should be focusing on them and putting them at the forefront of our weight loss and fitness journeys. How do so many of us think that change is about doing ALL the things? How do we continue to have a list of 400 things to do and if I don’t do all of them, I won’t hit my goals? So many of us are guilty of this. BUT this should not be the case!
What if I told you we do NOT need to be focusing on a billion things to change? We do NOT need to dive into these HUGE changes right away. AND we do NOT need to be totally focused on willpower and motivation to get to our goals. But… Why Kim? Why is this? Because smaller changes lead to greater successes!!
We keep telling ourselves that we have to make these significant sweeping changes and create these new routines… but tell me, how is that working out for you? How has it been in the past? Lasting habits don’t work that way. Sorry ladies, I hate to break it to you! I want you to think about this. WHAT IF your habits had nothing to do with willpower, had nothing to do with discipline, and had nothing to do with motivation? So many of us think that in order to get to the goals we want, we have to crush every single day. I get that, I really do, you are so excited about this new thing, you cannot wait to get started and you cannot wait to be that person! But going hard too quickly too fast has consequences and it USUALLY ends up with you quitting whatever it is you started in the first place.
Here is where I want you to take focus on how much change you are trying to create. Instead of looking at the entire rainbow and seeing the whole change, what if you just scaled it back and said what are you trying to create in the first place? If you are looking to have a stress-free summer, what is your vision for summer? What do you see for yourself? When you think about change, I want you to think that it is way easier to change the tiny… than the huge. So, when you say, you want to lose 20 pounds, it’s easier to say, “How do I lose 1 pound vs how do I lose 20 pounds?” When you are consistent with the small changes, they quickly add up and get you closer to your bigger habit!! It is the little things that add to the bigger things!! (What???? MIND BLOWN!) 😱
For many of us, it’s going slow, but it’s also about the pace that you chose that will ultimately help you get to your goal. With your old way of making changes, you think you have to suffer by going hard. I don’t know about you, but I am done stressing. I am done with the marathon sessions at the gym. I want my life to be more about revolving around my exercise and my food. I want to find a way that my diet, exercise, and life are NOT in constant battle with each other! And I don’t know if you can believe this… BUT there is BALANCE!!! Gasppppp 🤯
When I scale back and see the smaller changes, I can see success, I can take the steps. And every day or every week I want you to win! I want you to look back at your week and say wow! Look at me! I want you to think about your vision, your daily actions contribute to that vision. And if they don’t you are not going to get it. Focus on having that vision, and how you can contribute to it on a daily basis. Focus on what you can do daily to get you closer to that vision and if you can stick to it daily!
So here is an example…
If you are trying to lose 20 pounds, I am going to give you 2 scenarios and you are going to say which one you could see yourself sticking with for 30 days.
1️⃣ Every single night I am going to have a salad with dinner.
2️⃣ Every single night I am going to add a vegetable to my dinner.
Chances are, you are going to go with the vegetable… because there is more variety and more to try. Plus, you are not stuck with just a salad. Or one option. This gives you flexibility, and less likely you are going to stop doing this.
It is about going for the incremental change vs the sweeping change. Then, they become routines more quickly. The more things become routine, the more I get to that consistency. And that is the missing piece that so many of us don’t even know what it looks like. Then ultimately, we get the results!
How do we get to do these things??
Arthur Ashe said, “Stop where you are. Do what you can with what you got!” THIS IS MY MANTRA!!
We get all caught up in the vision, but we need to step back to say what do we need to do to get there? This is where I want you to stop and ask yourself, “but where am I right now?” And be honest. We cannot all be masters! Be okay with where we are too. Every master was once a disaster. Be a disaster. That is how we learn! Ask for help. Ask questions. If you need help or need something, reach out! Communicate. Lean into the fear that you won’t be perfect. You won’t always get it right. Lean into my fear that it may take me longer than I wanted it to. Drop the way you think it has to be… Give yourself grace and give yourself rest days. It is okay to rest.
As we make our decisions, it’s okay that it’s small. If you only have 2 days a week for workouts. Who am I to judge? I don’t know what your season is! But I will meet you where you are!! It’s okay to take the slow route, you don’t always have to be cruising down the highway at 80 miles an hour. It’s okay to say take your time. Again, give yourself grace. Eventually you will get there because fast isn’t always the best way.
What are some of the small changes you can start to make?
If you are someone who struggles with consistent workouts, put it in your calendar. When are you going to work out? Treat it like an appointment you cannot break, but ALSO give yourself flexibility if you are traveling, etc. Have fluidity in your schedule. I laid out my clothes the night before. That way I get up and just put them on! Then head to the gym or do what I need to do for the day!
Lower my expectations. Good, better, best What is a good week, better and best. Lower expectations when it comes to a great workout too! If you are over 40, you have a minimum of 2 days a week of strength training. So, I am challenging you to find heavy weights even if it is at home! What feels challenging but doable for you so you can start working out on a more consistent basis.
Eating healthy. I want you to think about what you can ADD to your list. NOT remove!
Try and track your food for just 3 days to see what it is you are really eating. I guarantee you that many of you are not eating enough protein. You are not enough vegetables and fruits and you’re not drinking enough water! Where can you add more of those things to your diet daily? Then get good at one or 2 of those things before adding on more.
Don’t step on the scale… Hide the scale? Tell yourself you can only weigh yourself 1 day a week. Maybe instead of the scale, try on a pair of jeans once a week to see how they feel. The scale doesn’t give you peace of mind, instead, it’s just going to take you down judgment alley!!
And lastly… Figure out a bedtime, set bedtime, and bedtime routine. So many women don’t have a bedtime. But this bedtime signals our body to chill out. Good sleep is critical for good mental to physical health! We need 7-9 hours a night, so we are not feeling sleep-deprived. How do I create this bedtime so we are going to bed at roughly the same time 7 days a week? Can I create a bedtime routine to get me into this zone at night that tells my body it is time to slow down and wind down? This will help us to create those regular habits that we are seeing and will help all other parts of our lives!
If you take one thing from this, have it be this. If we want to change our lives, we DO NOT have to make these big sweeping changes! It requires so much energy to do these sweeping changes. But if we keep our eye on the small things we want to do, we can do more.
Let me ask you… do you want to continue swinging for the fences and always feeling like you can’t reach it? Do you always feel like you’ve done your best but not lasting long? Or do you want to TRY something different and break up with the rigidity of how it has to be and how it has to look VS exploring other possibilities? What is it like to embrace balance, so that my whole world is not wrapped around my diet and nutrition and I finally am giving myself a chance to FREAKING LIVE!!
LINKS
Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/kimbarnesjeffersoncoach
Facebook Group:
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Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fit-girl-magic-healthy-living-for-women-over-40/id1476883661
Stress-Free Summer
https://www.fitgirlmagic.com/stressfreesummer22_eb
