2014 is headed to an end. How did you do with your fitness goals this year? Me? I didn't do as well as I wanted. I have no one to blame but my self. For the most part, my trips to the gym have diminished as time grew more and more scarce. Last month I noticed that my jeans starting feeling snug as I tried to wiggle into the them.
Not wanting to wait until the new year to commit to being healthy again, I decided to take small, fairly easy actions to get back on track. Whenever I'm a little over weight the last thing I want to do is run to the gym and start sweating. Not to mention having to deal with sore muscles, etc. I wanted to avoid all of that so I decided to take the path of least resistance.
I knew that if I did simple things, week after to week to positively impact my weight, I'd be motivated to increase my efforts until I was back in full swing. The plan was simple. With the help of my trusty
Fitbit, I would set a goal for myself to reach 10,000 steps a day. This came from a video I watched of fitness Guru "Yo Elliot" talking about the easiest, fastest fat loss method as a simple 1 hour walk. On another occasion I was at dinner with a group of acquaintances when one of the attendees (who's lost over 90 lbs of body weight) advised us that for fat loss he recommended walking over running. Running, he suggested, utilized more muscle than walking. So, in his words, walking would create a leaner body more easily than running. I'm not sure if that's 100% true but hearing the same message by different people definitely convinced me to take action.
I didn't actually "go for walks," I simply increased my daily steps. This meant that I was more active around the house instead of just sitting in front to the computer. Whatever it took to get additional steps in, I would do it. As an insurance policy, I
implemented the method of rewarding myself for every time I reached my 10,000 step goal. Soon, reaching that outcome became addictive. Best of all, I didn't even have to break a sweat doing it. As predicted, my tiny actions soon lead to greater actions kinda like the
domino theory we discussed in this post. It started with lots of steps, then I picked up my jump rope for the first time in months and began using my at home exercise equipment. As my energy rose, I craved healthier foods. It didn't take long for my clothes to start fitting like normal again.
I'm not exactly where I wanted to be but I'm very happy with the progress considering that I didn't make it a huge deal. I didn't run to the gym and kill myself on equipment, I made it a simple process. Using this method, I've been able to maintain consistency much more easily than previously. It won't be long until I'm back to my old fitness levels once again.
For those of you who have fitness/weight loss goals on your 2015 intention list. I urge you to start now. Just increase the amount of steps you take a day. Fit in steps where ever you can. Park farther, walk while you're on the phone, put your favorite song on and dance. Whatever it takes. My Fitbit has been invaluable in this process so I recommend that you have a definite way of measuring your progress if you are serious about getting healthier.
As of this morning, I've already logged in over 6,500 steps and, once I reach 10,000, I plan on rewarding myself by lighting this amazing peach scented candle.
Can't wait.
