- Identify your limiting patterns and take some time to recognize your limiting beliefs. I am all for realism, however daily I hear a lot of made up limiting beliefs, such as “I could never get down to a size 8” or “I could never go back to school” or “I could never do a 5k or 10k- I can’t even run a mile” or “I could never swim again”. What have you convinced yourself that you CANNOT do? Let’s revisit those limiting thoughts that seem to repeat in your life and see what needs to be edited.
- Continually connect with your motivation for change. Revisit your “WHY for Wellness” Why did you start on this journey to be a healthier you? How did you imagine you’d feel, what did you dream of doing? It might be time to post your WHY again and consider spending a few minutes bringing your attention to your internal landscape and meditating on as statement that affirms and cements your motivation for change.
- Make a commitment & BE CONSISTENT. Hold yourself accountable for the changes you want to make in your life, for a better life. Track your progress, ask for help when you need it, bring others into your journey & utilize ALL the services offered to you.
- Acknowledge the difficulty! Losing weight, keeping it off, training for a goal, changing long standing patterns – none of it is easy, and to really take hold of your year and remain in a healthy mental place it is best to remind yourself of that fact. I promise there will be days, maybe lots of days, that you don’t want to do any of this but please DO IT ANYWAY! That’s the secret to real change.
Author: Heather Schwartz, MS, LMFT, CEDS Heather is a licensed psychotherapist and health coach at St. Jude Wellness Center. She runs the REACH Weight Management program, teaches classes on a variety of psychological topics and sees clients individually. Heather is also a part of the Ornish Cardiac Rehab Program.
