Motivational Tip – Mental Focus

Focus on your fitness goals throughout your day imagining how it will feel when you achieve them and how good your body will feel.  Imagine the confidence you will have and the way you will move about with ease.  Imagine the abundance of energy and health you will have each day. Imagine the strength, balance, and agility a fit body will give you and definite purposefinally imagine the successful life you will have from the realization of your goal.

Achieving a goal creates incredible momentum and inspiration and it will spill over in to every aspect of your life.

Hold on to these imaginings and your subconscious mind will influence your actions towards making them a physical reality!

 

Resolution Checkup

As you probably know, two of the most popular new year’s resolutions are to eat healthier and get in shape.  You may have set these resolutions for yourself this year and anyone going to the gym or driving by it can see by the parking lot of circling cars that many, many other people have as well.

new-years-resolution-appleJanuary and February are typically the busiest months of the year for gyms and fitness professionals but inevitably the number of people exercising decreases as people get frustrated with lack of results, or the high motivation they had at the beginning of the year starts to fade away.

We are now at the beginning of March and it’s time for a resolution checkup!  Are you on track with the goals you set at the beginning of the year or have you lost your motivation?  Are you starting to skip workouts or maybe you’ve given up completely?  Whatever is going on, it’s time to reassess your goals and I will show you some ways to stay on track so you can achieve results and obtain the health and fitness you deserve.

Goal Setting

The first step is to come up with a big goal then break it down in to some smaller short term realistic goals that you believe you can achieve in a realistic time frame.  Making resolutions in January goal_setting_activitiessaying you want to lose weight, eat healthy, and workout more are too broad of goals.  Of course that is what you want to achieve but how much weight do you want to lose and by when?  What junk foods are you going to limit as you go about your day?  How often and on what days and times are you going to work out?  These are some questions you will need to ask yourself to develop a clear picture in your mind of where you want to be fitness and health wise in 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year and beyond.

The next step once you have thought of a big long term goal then broken it down in to smaller short term goals, is to write them down and put them in a place where you will see them often daily.  Having a constant reminder of your goals will keep them fresh in your mind.  Your mind is a very powerful tool and what you focus on you get so focusing positively on your goals will keep you inspired and motivated.

Breaking your big goal down to monthly targets will really help you stay focused and motivated on what you need to do and will also help alleviate overwhelming feelings.  Always remember that small steps forward on your fitness journey will inevitably bring you to your destination.

Set a Resolution at the Beginning of Each Month

2013-CalendarThe average person who sets a resolution in January is very motivated in the beginning then life happens and those resolutions get left behind until the following year.  Then the same resolution is made and left behind and so on and so on.

I believe you will have a much better chance of success if you set a small resolution at the beginning of each month.  This relates to breaking your big goal down in to smaller goals.  Figure out what you can do this month that will help you toward your goals, write it down, and resolve to do it.  The sense of accomplishment from achieving a goal you have set for yourself is so huge and satisfying that it will drive you further and further to new heights of fulfillment and joy.  I believe all of us are happiest when we are making progress.  Life doesn’t stand still.  It is constantly changing and when we change and grow with it we can be swept away to our highest potential.  Resolve to be the best you can be and you can do this by setting monthly resolutions and doing your best to achieve them.

Vision and Mindset

Vision Road Sign with dramatic blue sky and clouds.When you are making these goals and resolutions you must be able to envision what it will feel like when you’ve achieved them.  You must be able to envision them so clearly that you feel as if you’ve already succeeded.  Like I said before, the mind is very powerful and if you can create the picture in your mind with feeling and your senses, that vision will drive you and inspire you to make it a reality.  You will attract the right people to help you get to where you want to go, you will attract helpful and beneficial knowledge from various sources, and you will attract opportunities to help this vision become a reality.

A mental exercise I like to do almost daily is to sit down and visualize how I want my day to go and how I want my life to be.  I picture it in my mind complete with feeling and senses.  For example, as a personal trainer, I envision myself helping people get in shape, eating better, and being the best they can be.  I imagine what that would feel like.  I see them happy which in turn brings me joy and I imagine what that feels like.  I also do this with my own health and fitness, finances, business, and relationships.  I imagine how I want each part to be as clearly as I can and try to feel what that will be like.  As with all things, this can change and grow as time goes on.

Immerse Yourself in Fitness and Learn, Learn, Learn

Another great way to stay motivated and on track with your goals is to learn as much as you can about fitness and learnnutrition.  Reading books, blogs and magazines and watching videos will keep fitness on your mind and you are far more likely to exercise and eat better if you are constantly thinking about it.

I remember when I started to work out I would read Muscle and Fitness or Muscle Media magazine.  I would watch Pumping Iron with Arnold Schwarzenegger or read his Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding.  Even though they are more geared towards bodybuilding, they would keep me very motivated to do my workouts.  The same can be said for any book, blog, or magazine.  You will move towards what you are focused upon.

The more you know about a subject the better.  Learning new things strengthens the mind and gives you the best possible chance of succeeding in not only your health and fitness but with any subject of your life that you would like to improve.  Knowledge is power and strength and this can help you overcome fears in your life if you apply that knowledge and try new things.

Seek Help

If you’re having trouble staying motivated or focused then seek help.  A personal trainer can help you set realistic goals, show you proper exercise routines to achieve those goals, and ensure that exercises are done properly so you don’t help-button-mdinjure yourself.  An injury can set you back days, weeks, or months and this is very discouraging and can be the deciding factor for many people to give up.  Personal trainers can also keep you accountable and help you stay focused and motivated.

If a personal trainer isn’t an option for you then find a workout partner who has similar goals as yourself.  A workout partner can hold you accountable as well because you know he or she will be waiting for you at the gym for your scheduled workout.

Support System

You will need to stay focused and on track with your resolutions so it’s a good idea to have Supp-Sys-6a great support system.  Friends and family who support you on your fitness journey will improve your chance of success dramatically.  On the other hand, if you are trying to eat healthy and you are surrounded by people who are eating junk all the time, this can really hold you back.  Try to avoid temptation as much as possible in the beginning until you have good control over your eating habits and if your family at home is eating unhealthy then do your best to encourage them to support you by joining in on healthy food choices.

Stay Positive

positiveFinally, I want to remind you that nobody is perfect and there could be slip-ups or setbacks on your fitness journey.  It is crucial that you do your best to stay positively focused on the end results.  Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t reach a set goal.  As long as you are working towards it you will get there.  Becoming negative and saying things like “I’ll never reach my goal”, “It’s too hard”, “I’m not good enough”, will sap all the motivation out of you and quite possibly stop you altogether from doing what needs to be done to succeed.  Negative talk and complaining externally and internally needs to be eliminated as much as possible.  Actually, limiting negative talk and complaining can be a good first resolution on your road to success!

So it’s now March and spring is on the way.  I hope you are on track with your goals and if not then I hope this resolution checkup can help you get back on the road to a happy, healthy, fit, and successful you!  Be the best you can be and never settle for less!

Change your Mindset, Change Your Life

There is a lot more to achieving your fitness goal than just exercising and eating properly.  In my previous post titled “Presence“, I talked about how being in the present moment can drastically improve your results.  With this post, I would like to elaborate further on how to achieve this mindset and share some things that I do myself on a daily basis.

First of all, an important point to remember is that your mind is a tool that can be trained and developed just like your body.  The real you is not your thoughts.  The real you is the life force within you and your mind is the tool that shapes your life around you.  The outside world is only a reflection of the thoughts and beliefs that you hold within yourself.

With this knowledge, you can start to change not only your health and body image but also your financial situation, your relationships, and self-esteem/confidence by consciously choosing your thoughts rather than just reacting automatically to every situation.

I see the evidence of how much your mind plays in to things with clients I have trained over the years.  Without fail, the people who don’t dwell too much on their current state and focus mostly on the end goal while enjoying the journey along the way, always get the best results from their fitness program.  The people who focus on their current body image with negativity and impatience about not being in the shape they would like will either get very little results or stay exactly the same way they are.  Sometimes they will actually go in the opposite direction and become more out of shape as more and more negative emotions surface from just looking at what is instead of focusing only on what they would like to achieve.

It’s not always easy at first to look away from what is but with daily practice you can gradually change your mindset.  So how do you do it?  There are many things you can do but I will share with you what has worked for me and anyone that knows me well, can attest to the fact that my life has changed in many positive ways.  One of my clients has affectionately called this the “Craig Plan” which brought a smile to my face so I will go with that title!  Here are the 9 things I do on a daily basis:

1.  I write down my goals and have them somewhere where I will see them regularly.  I’m also very clear and detailed about what I want to achieve.

2.  I meditate every day for 10 to 15 minutes.  Meditation will bring you in touch with your inner being and will develop mind control. This will also calm the mind and bring you in to the present moment which is where all your power is.  Remember this, the present moment is what matters.  The past doesn’t matter, the future doesn’t matter, all that matters is right now because this is where you are right now.  The thoughts and choices you make right now will affect your future.  When meditating, focus on your breathing and if a thought comes just let it pass and focus back on your breathing.

3.  I visualize every day for 15 minutes.  What I mean by visualize is I imagine the life and health I desire.  If I have a specific goal in mind then I visualize that and I’m very clear about it.  I picture what I will look like and feel like when I have achieved my goal.  Feeling is important.  You have to become so clear about your vision of yourself that you can feel it strongly.

4.  I say affirmations.  3 times every day, I stand in front of my mirror and say positive affirmations to myself.  Some examples of the affirmations I say are, “My life is abundant in every way”, “I am grateful for everyone and everything”, “I can do what I will to do, I can do anything”, “I am successful in all that I do”, “My life is filled with love and beauty”.  These are just a few of many things I say to myself daily and by doing this you reprogram your mind and change your beliefs.  Remember this always: A belief is just a thought you keep thinking over and over.  If you know this then you can change your beliefs and when your beliefs change, your life will change.

5.  I work out 5 days a week Monday to Friday no matter what.  If I’m not feeling 100% I will do something even if it’s just for 10 or 20 minutes.  Making a commitment to yourself and staying true to that commitment is a powerful boost to your confidence and self esteem. When you respect and love yourself it spills over in to every thing you do and other people will pick up on that.

6.  I keep a success log.  Every night before I go to sleep, I write down all the awesome things that happened during the day and I mean anything that I consider good.  It could be a nice comment that I received from someone, it could be something I finished that I planned on finishing, etc.  Anything that you consider positive that happened during the day, write it down.  Doing this before you go to sleep is important because you will fill your mind with positive things and you will wake up with those same good feelings.  When you wake up with good feelings and positive thoughts, you set up your day in advance for even more positive things to happen to you and you build huge momentum this way.

7.  I am continually learning new things and reading to better myself.  The universe is constantly expanding and we as human beings are a part of this universe which means we are meant to be expanding too.  If we expand and grow and strive to be the best we can be then the universe will support us with the people, circumstances, and thoughts to get us to where we want to be.  If we don’t expand and grow, we create resistance and we get stuck where we are.  This opens up the possibility to attract negative things in to our lives.

8.  On the weekend, I focus on other things that I enjoy and I slack on my healthy eating.  I indulge in higher calorie foods like pizza for example and I don’t feel guilty once about it. Once you feel guilty about something you are creating resistance again.  Guilt is a negative emotion.  Indulging in a cheat day will also raise your leptin levels which is the hormone that regulates body fat but I will leave that for another post!

9.  I don’t complain about anything.  I don’t complain to other people and I don’t complain internally to myself with my thoughts.  This is important and it really frees your mind to think more positively.  This is another one that takes practice.

So there you have it.  These are 9 things that I do on a daily basis and they have completely changed my mindset and my life.  I’m not saying this is the only way and I’m continually learning and applying new things to further shape my life and bring me to where I want to go.  If anything, I hope this helps bring about a new perspective within you which will bring you closer to your goals and the health and fitness you desire!