Resolution Radio

We are coming up on Resolution season.  There is probably a rule somewhere that says I should love resolutions.  The Personal Training Police may come find me and haul me away if I don’t or something.

 

I do love resolutions, just not so much the kind that we automatically make for the new year.  I believe we can start fresh every single day.  There is nothing magic about January 1, or Monday, or a birthday that ends with a zero.

 

However, if we are going to make some resolutions, I have some suggestions.

 

First, be realistic.  Sure, we’re dreaming about how fabulous we are all going to be in 2021, but nothing is as discouraging as finding out that we really are not going to manage to fly, jump start our modeling career, make a gazillion bucks in two weeks, and lose 582 pounds by January 2.  A realistic weight loss goal for most people works out to a pound or two a week.  A realistic cardio goal, starting from the couch, is to work up to 30 minutes five days a week.  A realistic weight training goal is to do one session a week for a few months and then work up to two or three.

 

Second, be consistent.  We can’t do our entire fitness goal on the first day.  (This is unfortunate, but complaining about it does not help—I’ve tried.)  My examples of realistic goals above are all about consistency—doing something every week, every day.

 

Third, get help.  We are not going to lose weight if our dear partner bakes us delicious cookies every day, no matter how much we love both our partner and the cookies.  We need to enlist our family and friends to help us with our goals.  Some of them may not want to find another way to show their love other than cookies, which is educational, sad, frustrating, and, eventually, empowering.  We are, in fact, more powerful than cookies, but we might need to recruit some non-cookie members for our team.  Our families and friends can help us make good choices, can work out with us, can hold us accountable.  Note:  it is absolutely not fair to get mad at your accountability buddy for asking, very nicely, if you are sure that you really want to eat that third chocolate bar.  Our teams can be larger than our circle of friends and family.  We can get help from trainers, doctors, dieticians, nutritionists, and other health professionals.

 

Fourth, be kind.  Change is hard.  We are sometimes going to blow it.  When that happens, we do not need to be scolded.  We need to be encouraged and helped.

 

We can make 2021 awesome.