As we all welcome in a new year so many people will be making resolutions for 2016. Things you want to accomplish. Places you want to go. Goals you want to achieve. Some of you are a part of the “Resolutioners” who keep making the same resolutions every year. Can we make a change that you can stick with? Maybe this year CAN be that year.
Here are a few tips from me to you:
#1 Don’t join a gym like Planet Fitness. You don’t put mud in your car. You don’t eat only boxed processed foods and saturated fat do you? When you join a $10 a month gym what you are doing without knowing it is setting yourself up for failure. Any gym that has more marketing material than actual shit to work out on isn’t going to give a shit about your goals or your future. They want your $ and they are betting on the fact that you won’t show up. It is actually how the place is so profitable! Look at it like this. A single PF might have 3,000 members but only be able to hold 100-200 tops. When the mentality is “It is only $10 a month man, that isn’t that much,” there is less of a financial responsibility to keep you going.
What to do instead? Find a gym that offers a tour of the place. Look around to see the types of people who are working out while on your tour. Make sure they have all of the facilities you may need. Shower, lockers/cubbies to store clothing, towels, changing rooms, and anything else you might need. Try to find a gym that offers new members a free workout and possibly nutrition advice. While this is a marketing technique for an upsell to private training at some gyms, a good gym will have staff who can bring you around and show you a simple workout and get you started in the right direction without a separate charge. Find a gym that you can feel comfortable in. But not Planet Fitness comfortable. You could do more at home with a yoga/pilates DvD and it would be more cost effective in the long run.
#2 If you want to a change make sure to cut it into manageable steps or goals and accomplish them!
So many people want to try to do things cold turkey. Just up and quit them. Around half of the people who have successfully quit smoking did so just by straight up quitting. However in most cases it is much better to take smaller steps to turn a goal into a lifelong habit. If you want to be healthier it is best to try to change a few things instead of the whole process at once. This way you can continue to feel accomplished as you smash goals. So add in a few more glasses of water a week. How about tossing out those boxed potatoes and learning how to make your own garlic smashed potatoes at home. Love to have syrup on your pancakes? Lets try protein powder pancakes with honey! YUM! Some people might want to learn a new hobby. I continue to work on my Russian language skills and I do it by making sure I have a few hours a week to practice. Set aside the time to accomplish the goals you’ve set for yourself!
#3 Accept failure. Not Defeat.
Realize that a failure that is accomplished because of hard work, sacrifice, and dedication isn’t a bad failure. It is a part of the learning process and a part of accomplishing something great. A human doesn’t come to accomplish anything without a struggle. Well… at least anything worth accomplishing in my damn opinion. If you make a choice to step outside your eating plan make sure to work harder to adjust it back to center again. If you miss a day of practice on your new hobby try to adjust your schedule to double down the next time. Don’t give up. Don’t give in. Never quit. This way you cannot be defeated.
Don’t just make another stupid New Years Resolution. Make a #HealthyGamer Lifechange. They may be small steps forward but eventually when you look back you’ll see just how far you’ve come.