About two months ago, when I felt myself emerging out of the funk that had been the six months before, I had all sorts of plans laid out before me. I had goals about my health, fitness and nutrition, about writing and being more creative, about dedicating time every day to checking in with myself, about appreciating my loved ones more. I had come up with practices and habits that would help to make me into the version of me I wanted to be. And I was excited about it.
It's the feeling you get when you first begin any new project. Things are shiny and new and interesting and you're curious about how it will all turn out. You make the necessary time to dedicate to this project before all else and you make it work. For maybe a week. And then life happens. And all of a sudden, there's no more time, no more excitement. Things get back-burnered or put off altogether, and soon you're right back where you started.
And in my case, this is when you start feeling totally disappointed in yourself. I always seem to take it harder when it's myself letting me down, mostly because I know the choices that went into whatever decision led to the letting-down and I can't ignore the fact that it was mostly just laziness (which is the saddest excuse for anything in the history of the world, by the way).
But this time I'm trying to remind myself that there's something to be said for the fact that this was never supposed to be easy, and it's definitely not supposed to happen overnight. When you're overhauling your entire life and working to change the very reasons behind your bad habits, set-backs are expected. When the new habits you're trying to pick up are the exact opposite of everything you're used to doing, you're not going to be comfortable with them right off the bat and you have to leave yourself some wiggle room, cut yourself some slack. I'm trying to remind myself that this is a process, that it's a bit like trying on clothes -- I'm looking for the right fit, and not everything I pull off the rack the first time around is going to look the way I want it to. So I just have to put it back and pick something else up (or buy it anyway and get it altered, but enough with this analogy).
So it's okay that I worked out only 2 days during the week when I meant to work out 5 days. Especially when I rarely ever worked out before that. And it's okay that I stopped journaling every single day, or haven't been able to cut out all that many calories from my diet. It's okay that I haven't accomplished every single one of my goals yet. Yet. The important thing is to not give up, to not throw in the towel and consider it a lost cause. Because there are no lost causes (now there's a cliche for you, and you're welcome). So I'm going to do my best to re-inspire and re-motivate myself this week, and to try and pick up where I left off.
What re-motivates you when you find yourself lagging behind? Music? Are there certain songs that just completely invigorate you? Talking it out with someone? Having impromptu dance parties in inappropriate places? Would love to hear any suggestions!
It's the feeling you get when you first begin any new project. Things are shiny and new and interesting and you're curious about how it will all turn out. You make the necessary time to dedicate to this project before all else and you make it work. For maybe a week. And then life happens. And all of a sudden, there's no more time, no more excitement. Things get back-burnered or put off altogether, and soon you're right back where you started.
And in my case, this is when you start feeling totally disappointed in yourself. I always seem to take it harder when it's myself letting me down, mostly because I know the choices that went into whatever decision led to the letting-down and I can't ignore the fact that it was mostly just laziness (which is the saddest excuse for anything in the history of the world, by the way).
But this time I'm trying to remind myself that there's something to be said for the fact that this was never supposed to be easy, and it's definitely not supposed to happen overnight. When you're overhauling your entire life and working to change the very reasons behind your bad habits, set-backs are expected. When the new habits you're trying to pick up are the exact opposite of everything you're used to doing, you're not going to be comfortable with them right off the bat and you have to leave yourself some wiggle room, cut yourself some slack. I'm trying to remind myself that this is a process, that it's a bit like trying on clothes -- I'm looking for the right fit, and not everything I pull off the rack the first time around is going to look the way I want it to. So I just have to put it back and pick something else up (or buy it anyway and get it altered, but enough with this analogy).
So it's okay that I worked out only 2 days during the week when I meant to work out 5 days. Especially when I rarely ever worked out before that. And it's okay that I stopped journaling every single day, or haven't been able to cut out all that many calories from my diet. It's okay that I haven't accomplished every single one of my goals yet. Yet. The important thing is to not give up, to not throw in the towel and consider it a lost cause. Because there are no lost causes (now there's a cliche for you, and you're welcome). So I'm going to do my best to re-inspire and re-motivate myself this week, and to try and pick up where I left off.
What re-motivates you when you find yourself lagging behind? Music? Are there certain songs that just completely invigorate you? Talking it out with someone? Having impromptu dance parties in inappropriate places? Would love to hear any suggestions!
