I am a stickler for routines. I thrive off of them and always feel off when I have been out of it for a few days. Getting back on track and falling off track here and there is something that happens to the best of us.
It wasn’t until the middle of my journey that I had to get out of this negativity mindset cycle. Whenever we have fallen off and try to get back on track, we tend to call ourselves out, riddle ourselves with guilt and nitpick at our failures. Then, we lose that clarity because we weren’t perfect at it and we made a mistake. Perfection doesn’t exist and you shouldn’t be focusing on that. Aim to be consistent and whatever consistency looks like to you. Stop calling yourself whenever you have fallen off track but feed yourself with positivity as that is the right call of action.
We’ve all been there and getting started again is always so hard but it is not impossible. Here are 7 tips to help you get back on track, change your mindset and feed yourself with positivity whenever you feel lost on your journey.
Give Yourself Grace
Giving yourself grace is one of the best ways to bring wellness into your health and fitness journey and also your life. It helps us to make small, sustainable changes to support our mental health, our long term goals and our well-being. Learn to forgive your mistakes and lapses in judgement.
Whenever I used to miss a training session, let laundry pile up and missed my weekly cleaning for my flat, I used to berate myself constantly. I allowed that guilt to make roots in mind and it would really eat at me. Once I learnt to let go of that guilt mentality and reminded myself that I am human, I felt relieved. It is okay to make mistakes and mess up. Just give yourself grace and work your way to get back on track.
Acknowledge What Went Wrong
Having the self awareness to know admit and acknowledge the wrong will serve you more than not doing so. Remind yourself that you didn’t fail but you made a mistake that you are willing to make right. Sit down, grab a notebook and write down what went wrong, why it happened, how it happened and what can do you do differently to make it better.
Revisit Your Goals
Revisiting your goals on monthly basis will help you figure out an action plan on how to reach them. I find that breaking my quarterly goals into monthly goals, into weekly goals and into day to day goals helps me stay on course. Instead of focusing on the bigger picture all the time, I can remain focused on what I need to do today to get one step closer to the bigger goal.
Make Changes To Your Plan
Once you have revisited your goals, spend some time creating your action plan. Look over at your old plan and see what you need to make tweaks to. Maybe you need to adjust the time you leave home to get to the gym, maybe to sacrifice some TV time to meal prep for the week or create a schedule that you can honour easily. Whatever it is, make time for those changes until you feel clear on what it is that you need to do.
Let Go Of Perfection
This is definitely a hard one for a lot of us, myself included. No one is perfect. Repeat after me: No one is perfect. You’re not perfect. I’m not perfect. You are going to mess up because life can be messy. You are going to say the wrong thing, make a mistake or do something wrong. Perfection is the enemy of progress and the sister of procrastination. For your health and fitness journey, the goal isn’t to be perfect but to be you. Be real, genuine and authentically you. Embrace the messy, the ups and downs – because it’s those parts that make your journey that extra special and appreciative!
Hold Yourself Accountable
To ensure that you get back on track successfully, you need to hold yourself accountable. This means to:
- Regularly review your performance
- Ask yourself questions such as ‘How well did I do today?’ ‘What can I do better tomorrow?’
- Find an accountability partner if that works for you
- Plan ahead and improve your time management skills
- Celebrate your wins and reward yourself for your achievements.
Remind Yourself It’s A Journey
I know that it is easier to quit but if you are committed to your goals, you know that the journey is never easy. Some days will be great and others not so much. As long as you are moving forward, you’ll learn to embrace every stage of the journey.
Here are my 7 tips to help you get back on track on your health and fitness journey. There is definitely a tip for everyone regardless which chapter you’re in. If you have faced any setbacks recently or in the past and something you did really helped you, share it in the comments. Your answer may help someone else!
Until next time,
Folakemi
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