How to get serious about losing weight.
Earlier this year, I decided to get serious about working out. While I may be a trainer, that alone doesn’t make me an avid exerciser. It was for me, as with some of my clients, drudgery and I never seemed to get into a steady flow.
That is until I made it a non-negotiable.
non·ne·go·ti·a·ble
/ˌnä(n)nəˈɡōSHəbəl/
adjective: not open to discussion
The thing is, in the past, working out was always open for discussion and highly debated!
There may have been times that the debate got so heated I didn’t even bother with the discussion the following day, I just went about my business, filling my hours with other things rather than taking the time to strengthen my body.
But it was always there, that nagging feeling that I needed to move my body with purpose and I wasn’t getting it done. The guilt started slowly becoming more powerful and surpassed in strength the ease of avoidance. The simple solution was to get my heart rate up and relieve myself of this guilt. I knew it would help. Obviously, I knew it would. I have clients who I tell this to on a daily basis. But I was not getting it done for myself. (Shhhhhhhh..)
To turn the tides, a simple matter of being real with myself, and finally deciding on taking action was necessary. My action step became setting up my non-negotiables and creating a system that easily promoted follow-through.
What this looks like is this:
Non-negotiable #1: Each week I will work out at least three times on the bike.
(I have a Peloton in my garage — and let me tell you, the mental fortitude it takes to even step into the garage in the winter when it’s 30˚ is a whole other discussion I had to squash! But I did it. I had no choice. It wasn’t up for discussion.)
Non-negotiable #2: In addition to the three bike days, I will get in two additional workouts.
I left these workouts wide open in length, so they could be as little as 5 minutes or as much as 30 minutes, and meditation counted as a workout. (I felt as long as I was taking the time to invest in my health then it counted.)
Non-negotiable #3: (And the most effective one to date) I will no longer entertain the discussion. Any discussion that can derail my efforts is no longer allowed.
Nothing was open for debate.
I picked times that worked well for me and when the bell tolled, I automatically put on my workout clothes as though a bot without a thought (not even about how freezing (or hot) the garage would be) and I got right into my workout.
The result: My follow-through rate is through the roof!
My muscles are stronger. My core is tighter. My endurance is growing. And my consistency is better than it’s ever been.
There are days I choose a 10-minute workout because that’s all the time I have, and I’m totally cool with that. I used to think I couldn’t get much done if I only had 10 minutes, but turns out the amount of time you have isn’t what matters most. What matters most is being consistent. If you do 10 minutes a day, that’s 70 minutes a week that you devoted to yourself.
Better than the zero I was tallying up the weeks prior.
Decide what are you tired of dealing with and refuse to let it be part of your life by not allowing it to be up for discussion any longer.
• • •
Click here to learn my 5 strategies to achieve your fitness goals… without breaking a sweat!
