How to Keep Your Fitness Resolutions
Now that we are well into February some of us might be struggling with our New Year's resolutions. Perhaps we over extended ourselves and now are struggling to keep our resolutions going. Or maybe we never got to them because life got in the way. Whatever the reason, it is important to remember that the best time of year to start something new is when it is best for you. And when it comes to your health any time of year is better than not starting at all. But since making resolutions is popular this time of year let's talk about how to better make them stick.
If you have a resolution that involves physical activity it is important to remember that when comes to physical training, every little bit counts. It is very easy to fall into an "all or nothing" mindset, especially when we are trying to build new habits or learn a new skill. But this mindset rarely sets us up for success because the second we don't meet whatever criteria we have set for ourselves we quit. Real progress is not linear. Progress is in a constant state of flux. In physical training sometimes we noticeably improve after one session, but sometimes we won't notice improvement for several weeks. Other times it can feel as though we have actually gotten worse. This can be very frustrating when trying to make long term changes.
So how do we handle the ever changing path of progress? In my experience, reflection is very helpful in keeping me on track, but there are a lot of misconceptions about what reflection actually is. Some view reflection as merely the process of remembering past experiences. These experiences can be recent and answer questions like "what happened today/yesterday/this week?" or they can be long term and answer questions like "what happened this month/last month/this year?". This type of reflection can be very helpful in tracking progress but tends to stop short of initiating any kind of change in our conduct. It is meant to be a starting point so we may learn exactly where we are currently. However, real change requires deeper observation of ourselves. Instead of only observing our actions we observe ourselves observing our actions. While this sounds sort of abstruse, this kind of deep reflection helps us to move away from the "all or nothing" mindset mentioned earlier. We do this by analyzing how those experiences affect us and look to answer questions like "why am I like this?" or "why did I make this choice?".
Now it is important to remember reflection takes practice and it is very easy to get stuck in the short term situation. When I have found myself struggling I have always found it helpful to check my progress with a trainer, teacher, or partner that is aware of my situation and goals. It can also be helpful to keep a log/journal to look back on if that is your kind of thing. Checking progress with an outside source (i.e. your trainer or past journal entries) can help "get you out of your own head." For example, when dealing with injuries or pain it is very easy to get stuck only noticing the pain in the moment. When this happens it becomes very difficult to "see a light at the end of the tunnel" so to speak. This is especially true when the pain has been lessening but then flares up again. By checking in with an outside source I am able to get clarity on what is actually happening and see the flare up for what it is. And what it is is temporary. This does not downplay the reality that the pain sucks. What it does is make it easier to reflect on my current situation from a clearer and less emotionally reactive position. This in turn can make it easier to stay motivated to keep my resolutions long term.
In conclusion, if we are going to keep our resolutions we must work toward removing the "all or nothing" mindset that can hold us back. We need to remember that progress and change are never linear, but in a constant state of flux and that we are only human. As the saying goes "progress not perfection". And a step toward progress still counts as progress even if results are slow to occur.
