WHY AM I DOING THIS?

Have you ever started something important, felt that you were all in, committed, 100 percent on board and going to make it happen only to find yourself 6 months down the road not much farther ahead than where you started? Sadly, more often than not this is the case for many who want or need to make positive changes for their health.  With $178 billion spent on health and wellness annually in North America and more and more people mindful of healthy lifestyles, why is it the overweight and obesity rates are still climbing and are currently recorded at an all time high?  Why indeed.

Not to confuse you by answering a question with a question, but the answer to "Why, despite the billions spent every year, are people seemingly unable to attain their health and weight loss goals?" IS your "Why".  Our "Why" is our reason for not only implementing a change, but sticking it out and living with those changes to make them permanent.  Getting started is easy, it's the staying started that can prove to be problematic.

When it comes to weight loss, most of my clients made the choice to begin their program out of frustration.  Comments like; "Between the ages of 40 and 50, I gained about 2lbs each year..", "My doctor wants to put me on cholesterol meds...", "I really need to fit into my dress for the wedding..." are quite common,  and make life uncomfortable enough to want to change.  The problem occurs when you expect long term results from short term goals without knowing your "Why".   

Let's explore this a little further.  There are two types of goals, short-term and long-term. Short-term are like those we discussed above - reasons that affect only the here and now without any connection or link to why you'd continue into the future and beyond.  A long-term goal focuses on the results you would like to see maintained over time and how to make that happen by asking, "Why am I doing this?" and "What will I get from achieving my goals?"  

Take the gal who wants to fit into her wedding dress, let's call her Jenna. Looking good and fitting into that wedding dress is a huge motivator for Jenna and in all likelihood she will succeed in taking off the weight and look absolutely fantastic in that dress. But what will motivate Jenna to continue down a healthy path after the wedding? Without asking herself “Why do I need to keep eating well and living a healthy lifestyle?” and “What will eating and living this way do for me long term?”, Jenna is likely to fall back into her old unhealthy habits and regain that weight. By looking a little deeper and finding an important reason or “Why” to continue (“I have so much energy and find myself happier and more outgoing”) and then also answering the question, “What will continuing to live this way give me?” (“My husband loves the outdoors and since losing that weight, I've been able to spend more time with him going on outdoor adventures.”), Jenna will set herself up for success long term.

As each person is unique, so is their “Why”. So, if your progress isn't where you'd like it to be, or if you've had a setback or two, I encourage you to look deep within yourself and find your “Why”. A “Why that makes you cry” - a reason to put yourself first and nudge you back on track when life happens. And when you do this, you will be able to achieve and maintain your goals for life.