I always believed that I was the type of person, that if something wasn't going how I wanted it, I gave up.
If the weight didn't come off after eating well for a few days, I would get bored, eat cake and say screw the diet.
If I slept in when I was supposed to get up and exercise, I would decide to stay in bed and then barely move all day, thinking what is the point.
Even sometimes in the past with writing, I would miss it for a day and then think "Oh I've blown it now"
Whilst consistency is extremely important, it doesn't mean that we have to live our lives by ridiculously strict rules, in order to achieve our goals.
For example, going back to dieting. If I put myself on a strict 1200-calorie-a-day diet for a month, I would lose weight, but I would be miserable and this is where I have gone wrong in the past.
It's the same with exercising, I put myself under so much pressure with it, that any enjoyment I do get out of it is ruined because it is now a mundane chore that I have told myself I can't take a break from.
At the beginning of the year, I was having a crisis of confidence.
I was churning out lots of writing but didn't feel like I was getting anywhere with it, I felt like throwing in the towel.
But then I realised why I do it in the first place.
Writing is the one thing that's mine. My Passion. My Why. The reason I do it is that enjoy it.
So then it got me thinking, how can I apply this to other areas of my life?
Such as weight loss & exercise.
These are things I do want, I want to lose weight and I want to find an exercise I enjoy, but each day when I get up I have a ream of excuses that I fully believe, such as;
I am too tired
I'm not feeling well
Its too hot
I'll start tomorrow
What's the point
I've been on slimming world, weight watchers, and Noom and even taken slimming tablets. I've done Joe Wicks 90 day plan and I've had a fitness coach.
It makes me wonder if I really do want it at all? Why the constant self-sabotage? It's not even just about how I look anymore, it's about being healthier as I get older.
There is so much conflicting information out there, sometimes I am not sure what to believe anymore (is that another excuse?)
With my writing, I plan my days. It's taken months to tweak my routine, but I think I have finally got it right and if something doesn't work, I just change it, so that's what I am going to do.
I am going to plan my diet and exercise goals with the same care and attention I do my writing goals, I am going to be kind to myself when the days aren't so good and celebrate when they go well.
I'm going to start by doing the following:
Creating a meal plan for the week
Tracking my calories on MyFitnessPal
Tracking my steps
Tracking my sleep
When something doesn't work, I will tweak it, if I don't get something done, I will dust myself off and keep going. I know I have the stamina. I know I can.
I will be documenting my progress over on a separate Instagram @claremarie81 if you would like to cheer me on.
Better get planning. ❤️
