Living with intention includes doing what you say you are going to do....especially to yourself. I'm not just talking about getting to the gym or working out. I'm talking about anything we say we are going to do and never get to it. We usually keep promises we make to other people but rarely keep the ones we make to ourselves. And a promise is anything we say we are going to do. If we don't keep our own promises, we never believe ourselves when we say we are going to do something. Let's make sure that stops happening.
The first step to not breaking your promises is to not take on more than you can handle. Be realistic about what you can do each day. It's like when you start a fitness program and you decide to start running five miles a day. If you haven't been running it's likely you won't make it that far. And when you don't, you feel disappointed and let down leading you to give up altogether. It's the same with a new eating regimen. Don't make such drastic changes that you will be miserable and deny yourself everything you love. It's a set up for failure. I know we all want to lose weight immediately but it's just not possible in a healthy way. Life is going to pass regardless so take baby steps and work on one habit at a time. That way they are more likely to stick.
It's the same with your to-do list everyday. Do you go over your schedule the night before and pile so much in one day that it is impossible to get through? Don't take on too much. Or put down some things in the maybe column instead of the "must" column. That way you don't feel let down if you didn't get anything done. Or have an ongoing list that you do what you can everyday. Be productive but don't take on too much.
This is also one of the reasons I urge you to stop the snooze habit. When you set your alarm at night you are making a promise to yourself that you will be getting up when you say you will. When you hit the snooze 2, 3 or 4 times....you are breaking your promise to get up when you say you will first thing in the morning. It's not a great way to start the day. Along the same vein, don't over schedule yourself. Don't agree to take on projects or meet up with friends if you know it's likely to put you behind schedule or cause you to cancel things. No one likes to be canceled on or put off so try your hardest not to do it.
All of these suggestions by themselves are doable. If you try them all at once it will feel insurmountable. So try to change one habit at a time. Make certain things a non-negotiable. Once I made my workout a non-negotiable everything changed. I no longer tortured myself everyday about whether I was going to work out or not. I just knew I was doing it on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays...no excuses. I have gotten off track with that since I sprained my ankle but I started again this week. And it really is torture when I don't keep to my schedule. I go to be every night saying I will workout tomorrow and then in the morning I don't feel like it and put it off again. Here's a secret, I rarely if ever feel like working out. Do it anyway. When you say you are going to do something...do it.
It's cocktail Friday y'all! Woo Hoo! We made it. Over the weekend, think about one major change you want to make that will make you more accountable to yourself. For more inspiration check out my website at hopefulist.com. Now go be a badass today. You know I'm cheering you on!
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