Plan
I really wanted to make Day 7 “Rest.” You know, cuz the whole God-rested-on-the-7th –day thing. I thought that would be really clever of me, especially if Day 7 would have been on Sunday. Wouldn’t that have been so cool?
But, truly, I feel like we need to do a bit more “creating” (Get it? Like God created stuff before He rested?”) before we start “resting.” Specifically, we must create a plan.
“But Fitness Friday Girl, aren’t you going to tell us what to eat? What exercises will maximize our fat-burning potential? How to get rid of my love handles?”
All in good time, my friend. All in good time.
Remember when I told you fitness is 80% mental? That’s still true. If you spend a good chunk of time getting your brain on straight, the physical portion will be flow naturally from it. It won’t be a matter of convincing yourself each day to make healthy choices, because it will be a done-deal in your brain. It won’t be a matter of depriving yourself of the foods you love and forcing yourself to to do an exercise you hate, because you will have already laid a solid foundation for a healthy lifestyle deep in the recesses of your mind. And you will have planned for both meals and exercises that you love.
Planning is an absolutely critical aspect of your health. And by “plan,” I’m referring to an over-all plan to reach your goal. (We will talk about smaller plans like planning ahead for meals and exercise in later posts)
So, what plan should you chose?
Doesn’t matter, really. As long as it meets the following criteria:
It should be goal-specific. This is why it’s so important to set a goal. You can’t really choose a good plan if you don’t know what you want to accomplish. If your goal is to lose weight, then a fat burning diet and exercise program is in order. If your goal is to eat more fruits and veggies, then a plan to find interesting recipes and integrate those into your meals is what you want. If your goal is to run a marathon, then a running schedule is in order.
It should be something that is do-able (and likeable!) for you. If a gym membership isn’t in your budget, look for a good home-based workout program. If your schedule doesn’t allow for at least 8 hours of intense training a week and you can’t swim, don’t sign up for the triathlon in six months. If you hate running, choose a different cardiovascular exercise. If you need accountability, your plan should include other people.
It should last at least 30 days, give or take. Why? Because it takes about that long to get a good feel for whether the plan is effective. It also gives you ample time for it to become a habit. Or not. You might hate the plan and need to go to Plan B. Which is totally okay. No shame in that. But it’s a good idea to stick with one thing for a few weeks before going to Plan B.
And don’t worry, we will talk all about ditching a failed program on another day. I have lots of experience with ditching failed programs.
So tell me, do you have a plan? I want to hear what you’re going to do to reach your goal!
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I have a plan! I started the Couch to 5K program with my youngest daughter--I'm on week 3. I mainly did it to encourage her (running is really hard for me), but I'm hoping to see some benefits myself. And soon, I hope!
ReplyDeleteMy fitness plan is fine. I just need to ditch the chip addiction. My day does not seem complete without chips. I feel like I store them in my thighs.
ReplyDeleteAny specific workout to reduce the "thightocks"?
I tried to post this once, so let's try again. I have a suggestion for Melanie. I love to keep freshly peeled carrots on hand (I clean and peel myself. They have better flavor.) This really seems to help me stay away from chips and salsa which is my big weakness.
ReplyDeleteMy plan right now is to just do more yard work! I have lost 2 pounds that I put on this winter by building raised flower beds, digging up and moving pavers, building a new fence and filling in old holes! Woohoo! It's fun and productive!
haha. my tip for today is rest. :D
ReplyDelete