Now What?

January is over, your plans didn’t go as you intended. Do you sit back and wait till 2020 comes rolling on by?

Well if this sounds like you, you’re not alone.

January is all about getting things going on the right foot. But there’s this thing called life. And things don’t always go as planned. To make it even worse, January is and was simply cold, dark and lonely too.

Are you frustrated? Of course.

But that doesn’t mean that you should mope around and wait till next year. Take a step back and think over what was it that was hindering your progress. Keep asking yourself why to get to the root of the problem.

My problem? A lack of motivation & finding my why.

Why was this? Many reasons. A change in my atmosphere, a change in the people I was surrounded by, and a change in my mindset to name a few. This can happen at any point. For me, it was most evident this January just when I had many other intentions in mind instead. My mental health was not where it normally was and it was getting the best of me.

Not everyone is born with a “go get it” mentality day in and day out. It’s one thing to build habits into your day and do those habits, but if you’re only going through the motions you might not get where you want to go.

How do I go about trying to bring back that motivation I had at the peak of my summer? The summer was all about being mindful about what I ate, getting to the gym and working out because I wanted to, putting in the effort at work, and all while spending time with friends and being happy. Well, I can’t say I’m in the same boat right now. I wish I was. But I’d be lying.

What to do?

There’s no time to mope around, and I or yourself can’t rely on someone else’s help to get back up and running at full speed.

Whether you are looking for that encouragement in regards to your eating habits, your daily activity, chores around the home, or just your overall mood, be your own cheerleader. If that means talking to yourself, and saying, “yes I can” or “It can only get better from here” then so be it. No one knows what you’re telling yourself.

Here are some tips that have been helping me build myself back up so that I can hit the ground running sooner rather than later. Even though my January did not go as planned, there’s always tomorrow. Hence why setting goals can be discouraging and focusing on intentions can be more promising.

1. Understanding that there are some things you can’t change about yourself. You can try, but you can’t change the way you act towards people or your personality. You can fake it but you won’t get far.
2. Take each day as a new opportunity. If that’s on a Wednesday, then so be it. You need to start somewhere.
3. Set small goals for the day. This way you don’t feel defeated.
4. Stop comparing yourself to others. Everyone has their good days and their bad days. You need to focus on yourself.
5. Be kind to yourself.
6. Understand the choices that you are making. Will these impact you in the short-term? What about long-term?
7. You need to move around but can’t find the motivation? Do what you enjoy. There are so many choices for exercise and activity. Don’t make yourself do something because someone else is doing it.
8. There will be obstacles you’ll still need to tackle. If you fail, the world is NOT going to end. It’s another life lesson being placed in front of you to see how you can handle it.
9. Your fitness and health journey does not mean you need to sacrifice everything. There’s no need to be perfect, and you can’t be perfect. Work on doing the best you can possibly do instead.
10. Do things for your mental health. When your mental health is winning, your overall attitude will be winning.

You’ve got this. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t.

It’s just another bump in the road that you need to get by.

Your mental health is just as important to your overall health of emotional and physical health.

A great tool in tracking your health including your food consumption, mood, activity, and liquid is with the help of the YouAte app journal! Be aware of why you feel the way you do by looking back on your day.