One of the things that Britt has got me doing, in addition to the actual exercise, activity and diet stuff, is to “add something, remove something and set a goal” on a weekly basis. This has proven to be quite useful, and the add/remove is essentially a version of “getting rid of stuff that’s holding you back, to make room for the stuff that can help you grow”. In other words, forming good/better habits and practices.
remove something
This step is to stop/remove something, whether physical, spiritual, mental, relating to the overall health and fitness goal. In week 1 I opted to stop having sugar in my daily long macchiato, I figured it would take some time to get used to; reality is that it didn’t. It definitely contributes towards the goal – basically cutting 10 teaspoons of processed “bad” sugar from my diet per week. I still have my daily morning coffee and it tastes fine!
For week 2 I have determined to remove “negativity” from my journaling on this blog. What I mean by this is that I will stop making so many references to aching and so on. Sure, if my mood is actually negative then I will journal that. However, the little niggly comments/notes about aches and pains really don’t serve me any purpose. Writing them down reinforces them in my head and makes them more real.
So they are now a thing of the past!
add something
As with the “remove” option, this relates to anything physical, mental etc. that I want/need to add to the mix that will move me forwards. In week 1 I added daily meditation, making the effort each morning (on the bus to work typically) to still and empty the mind, relax and focus. This has done wonders on “bad” days, giving me time to pause for thought and get my head back in the right place. It also acts as a very useful buffer between work and non-work time.
For week 2 I am adding something physical; an evening walk. One of the really successful things so far has been the amount of walking I am able to fit into the day. It’s clearly doing me a lot of good and adding more will bring additional benefits. I have also decided to make this walk more meaningful by making it a walk to the park with Kian. That way I get a bit more physical activity, Kian gets to run off some energy before dinner and bed, and I get to spend some play time with my boy!
set a goal for the week
The idea of setting a small goal for the week, as I understand things at least, is to give yourself the chance to have a tangible win in the short term. Having some form of victory to celebrate each week is a great way to keep the motivation level up and maintain momentum. There are times when things don’t pan out as expected, and these little wins along the way can give your efforts a timely boost.
In week 1 I set a goal of breaking 2m 30s for a 500m row. Week2’s goal is to incorporate some full “toe” push-ups. Both of which physically help me in the overall scheme of things; they have also provided some great motivation and even helped knock down a mental barrier or two (particularly with the push-ups).
definitely worth doing
I can definitely say that these things (add, remove, set a goal) are worth throwing into the mix, You get to ditch things that are possibly holding you back (or at least not working in your favour), try things that might help you move forward, and give yourself the opportunity to experience a sense of achievement (which in turn boosts your morale, motivation and overall energy).
Give it a go!
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