Setting Goals

 I am an all or nothing kind of person. I am either all in or all out and then sometimes I will circle back around. It makes dieting hard to stick with. I will try a diet fad, mess up, and then just quit. For me, it just doesn't work. I have found that making habits, small term goals, and a sustainable lifestyle is much more productive than all or nothing. SO I am going to walk you through everything I have done to get to the point I am in life.

WRITE IT OUT:

     Think about what you want to accomplish overall. Do you need to lower blood sugar? Exercise more? Eat healthier? Think of every little detail. The big picture.

Jean's Example:

•  Work out 3 hours a week
• Eat a plant based, whole food diet
• Eat 75% raw food
• Drink 1 liter of water a day
• Teach my children how to pick whole food, health sustaining choices

      Now that you have the overall goals think of what it would take to get there. Make these your mini goals.

 Jean's Example:

• Stop drinking calories (pop, mochas, sweet tea)
• Cut out processed sweets and junk food
• Cut out cheese and dairy at home
• Cut out meat
• Stop overcooking, salting, and frying vegetables
• Make time for exercise
•  Cut bread intake

        Take one goal and focus on it. Decide what steps you need to take to accomplish your goal and do it well.

   Jean's Example: To stop drinking calories I will

• Take water with me everywhere I go
•  Allow myself to have one pop everyday for the first week
•  One pop every other day for the second week
•  Two pops a week
•  One pop a week
•  Don't buy or bring pop home
• Order a smaller pop

                           

 Don't worry about your whole list. You have the whole picture in your head. It is going to take a while to get it all accomplished. I have been working on my list for over a year and I still have a long way to go. It is okay though because it is sustainable living and nothing is over night. There is no magic pill, there is no crash fad diet, it is all about discipline and education and consistency. Your list will change and you may scratch things off or add to it and that's okay too!

  Once you have one goal accomplished add another. These things could take a while to accomplish. You should try to accomplish one goal a couple weeks at a time. If it takes longer NO BIG DEAL. Give yourself grace. If you completely mess up one day- no problem. You are human. Dump the remaining pop down the drain. It isn't a waste. This is your health.

   When I started this journey it took baby steps to get to where I am. Once again-still need to change a lot! Here is what my steps looked like

- Start jogging in the summer
- cut out pop and sweet tea
-start counting calories
-cut out white sugars and flours and replace with wheats and natural sweeteners
-start eating clean, cut processed food out of my home
-no more cheese and dairy at home
-no more meat. period.
-start jogging faster and longer distances
-start adding toning
-start incorporating more raw fruits and veggies

 We have really struggled with bread and cheese this winter. And sugar! Its cold! I just want to hibernate. But it really is okay. I know that my eating habits as a whole are significantly better than they used to be. I see where I deal with stress different and I still maintain exercise even in my worst weeks.

RESEARCH- get a database of recipes. Read about clean eating. Read about Whole foods and plant based foods. It may seem overwhelming but it is the best way to retain information.

Overall that is the way that works best for me. Give yourself grace and remember it is a process!
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