Resolutions? To resolve or not to resolve.
If you’ve been watching TV lately, you might have watched one or more of the recent college football bowl games. Even if you didn’t, you probably recall a similar scene at any sporting event: hours before the kick-off (or face-off), fans are building their anticipation of victory. The commentators are discussing the advantages of each team and the keys to success. The cheerleaders are practicing their formations and cheering voices. The fans settle into their seats with smiles, eyes filled with anticipation and excitement of the promising future of the game. The coaches and players enter the field with resolute faces, ready to win.
And then the game begins.
Hope for both teams is prolonged until the first team scores. Hope continues for the losing team, depending on whether they suffer another setback or even the score. Momentum is vital in this stage. A close call, an outstanding effort, or luck will tip the momentum in favor of one team. Consequently, the next score could determine the course of the game, and the fans begin to ask, “How many obstacles can the losing team overcome?”
The same is true of our new year resolutions.
We face the new year like the start of a game, with the hope of what could be…what will be! With fresh planner in hand, blank journal tucked under the arm and best intentions in mind, we set out to achieve this year what we couldn’t before.
Until that first setback comes. You caught a cold. Freezing rain. The alarm you set didn’t go off. Life: 1, You: Zero.
You’re not that fragile, so you push through. Take some cough medicine, reset the alarm and prepare to bundle up. Overcome the initial set backs and persevere through the next week. Life: 1, You:1. You’re even, but how is your resolution now?
And this is where your battle to fulfill the resolution happens. How many obstacles will you overcome?
We’ve all been at the crossroads of whether to dig deep and press on or whether to turn around and give it up. To prepare you to move forward when you face that crossroad, take a look at these steps to help you overcome the setbacks that will definitely come anytime you are moving to change yourself… and your habits.
1- Determine what you want to resolve. Take time aside to reflect on what you want to change. You will have to resist your busy schedule and carve, yes CARVE, out some time for yourself to reflect. Write it in your calendar as an appointment. Go somewhere without distractions and turn off your phone. You won’t be able to know what you really care about until the dust of your busyiness settles and the calm of quiet allows you to see what is important.
2- Prepare to face setbacks. This is not an IF, but a WHEN. The bolder the resolution, typically the sooner and more often the WHEN.
3- Acknowledge the potential setbacks and how you will respond. Yes, there will be setbacks. No doubt about it. Understanding what KIND of setbacks you will face will help you prepare for them. You won’t be as surprised when they do happen and won’t be as derailed from your resolve when they occur. Make a list of each potential setback and how you will respond when it happens. (For example: Setback- Sick child. Response- At home Tabata workout when I send them to rest in bed. Setback- Had to work late. Response- Packed workout clothes in the car, change at work and go to the park for a 15 min interval jog/walk.)
4- Get your attention. As soon as you decide what’s important to change, the minutiae of your life will attempt to crowd it out with noise. You won’t be able to silence that daily noise; you will have to overcome it. And you do that by putting things in place that grab your attention to help you re-focus on what’s important. I tape a post-it or index card on my steering wheel with one word or phrase on it to grab my attention. I also will adhere a 8 1/2″ x 11″ (or larger!) sheet of paper on my vanity mirror with a Bible verse, phrase or word that snaps me out of my busyiness to remind me of what habit I’m changing. Screenshot on my phone? Yes, an image that refocuses my energy as a daily reminder. Change your visual cues every two months or even that visual will become background noise.
5-Tell someone. Be bold and share with someone who is encouraging what you’ve resolved to do. I know this seems obvious, but if they are an encouraging person, they will respond with encouragement. However if they are a discouraging individual, they will respond as they usually do. Don’t be surprised or let them derail you. Find that encouraging one and tell them, because you will need them when you’ve been setback. Just as a losing team finds encouragement on the sideline, so we find that encouragement from those who give it. Seek them out and your momentum will be revved.
As you look into the future of this year with the hope of what will be, apply these principles to sustain your resolutions. The setbacks will come, but like any championship team, what makes you is that you overcome them.
Each day, keep moving,
Priscilla
Note: As a fitness coach, it is my highest priority to keep my clients motivated and on track despite obstacles, distractions and just human nature. I work hard to determine what motivates each client and how much grace and truth they need to move forward. We all need a supportive environment to maintain healthy lifestyle and habits. If you are searching for that kind of environment, check out what we do here at CrossFit 1088: Hosted by Blue Wave Fit, where our mission is to bring CrossFit to All Ages. http://www.bluewavefitocala.com
Priscilla Jones and her husband, Brian, are owners of CrossFit 1088: Hosted by Blue Wave Fit. Their mission is to bring CrossFit to All Ages in Ocala, FL while raising their circus of four children.
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