Did you make New Year’s resolutions this year? About forty percent of Americans do and, though it is not scientifically shown, you can bet most of them involve some form of losing weight and getting healthy. What has been shown scientifically, kudos to University of Scranton, is that only 8% of people making resolutions stick to them. What is it that makes us all so lousy at setting and reaching goals? After all, a resolution is just a fancy way of saying goal setting.
What is it that we all seem to get wrong every year and how can we become part of that elite eight percent?
Get Real
You had a sleeve gastrectomy and now you are waiting for the weight to melt from you like a spring thaw. When you set your weight loss goals remember that you opted for the slow road. Certainly faster and more reliable than diet and exercise, but in the weight loss surgery world, lap band is the slow and steady option. Rely on your weight loss surgeon, Dr Bagnato to help you set realistic goals about what you can expect.
Setting the bar to high sets you up for failure and sucks the motivation right out of you. A realistic goal gives you constant reinforcement and keeps your motivation high as you achieve everything you set out to.
Set realistic weight loss goals based on the information that is provided by a medical professional. Since you will be following a strict dietary plan so that your body can heal after surgery, you should always consult your surgeon or your primary care doctor before making any changes or adjustments to the current plan.
The little things matter most
Start with small changes. It may be two years before you reach your final goal weight. So start with some small goals that you can achieve in the next couple of weeks. Instead of running a marathon, how about just getting out of your chair and taking a short walk? Any big goal can be broken down into many smaller goals. After all – a journey of a thousand miles is just one step, repeated many, many, many , many times.
For the love of the game
It’s the biggest cheat of all. The easiest way to achieve a goal is to select something you love doing. Think of all the things you have achieved in your life that you love to do. Now chose something like that only healthy. Wanting to do it puts you half-way there. If you hate doing something your chances of success are almost nonexistent.
Can’t think of something you like to do that falls into the health category? Try combining a couple of things just like a spoon of sugar with medicine when you were a kid. How about a goal of watching an hour of television every night? Easy right? Now combine it with your exercise bike and you can watch an hour of television while sitting on your exercise bike. It would also be good if you added pedaling into the mix but start small and work up to the big stuff.
Know when to fold ‘em
The purpose of a goal is to achieve it. If you don’t define exactly what the goal is, how do you know when you have come to the end of the journey? Without the vital end point the journey just goes on and on. Write down the goal. Be specific. Imagine reaching the end and look at what you have achieved. If you aren’t sure then your goal is not precise enough. Keep trying until you see yourself on the scale with the numbers that you want and the crowds cheering and the flowers and confetti and all that.
If you want to reach goals they have to be reachable. They have to be something you think is worth achieving and you have to know when you have made it. That is all the eight percent do. So Make your plan of action and then go join them.
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