As most people are planning their Halloween costumes, planning Thanksgiving dinners, and making their Christmas lists in preparation for the end of year holidays, I have been thinking a lot of my end of year goals, which I call my end-of-year resolutions. I wrote about it a bit last week; This is the time of year I start getting serious about ending the year strong, mainly because I know if I don't double down and focus, I'm likely to go off the deep end into holiday indulgences. Are you anything like me?
I work hard on moderation because I tend to swing hard in either direction (too strict or too indulgent). If I know I might go off the rails at the end of the year; it's smart to double down on goals. It holds me accountable to the middle ground because I know that no matter what, I'm going to indulge a bit more than usual over the holidays.
If I focus on my goals, I can enjoy all the upcoming holidays while staying on track. It's when we set our goals aside, and allow ourselves to get lost in the craziness of the holidays that our healthy lifestyles get off track. It's not to say I won't enjoy the holidays; I'll go into it with determined focus.
end-of-year resolutions
I signed up for three more months of coaching with my barbell strength coach. Having a coach will help me stay focused because it provides another level of accountability. I'm less likely to blow off a workout if I know I have to report it to someone. I hope to reach new strength and body composition goals by the end of the year, and that will only be possible with continued hard work through the holidays.
I've also been thinking a lot about what I want to accomplish in the new year. I know it's early, but when I finish this year strong with my fitness goals, it will free up mental capacity to focus on other types of goals in the new year, instead of a singular goal of undoing any damage from the holidays. If I finish the year strong, I'll be two steps ahead in the new year. How about you?
WORD OF THE YEAR: ALIGN
A couple of years ago, when there was chatter about selecting a word of the year; a single word to define your intention and mindset for the year, I chose the word "align." It spoke to me because I realized that aligning with my purpose and passion was more critical than hustling for success or money. And while I am more aligned with my purpose in the last few years, my alignment needs some fine-tuning.
In 2018 I went part-time at my marketing/sales job to free up more time to work on my projects, blogging, coaching, and training business. I did that for a year until I decided to go back to full-time hours so that I could get back on company health insurance. Adulting is hard. While I was able to maintain my client base in my spare time, I've felt less focused and dedicated to my personal goals with a pesky full-time job on my hands. (Joking! I'm grateful for the full-time income and health insurance.)
I heard John Berardi talk on a podcast about using your unique gifts as a compass, and it struck a chord with me. What lights you on fire? What activities make the time fly by without noticing? What would you continue to do for free if you weren't getting paid? I've been writing a fitness blog for ten years without getting paid.
It made me think: Am I doubling down on my natural gifts or trying to force an outcome?
Blogging and writing are my passions. My blog was the reason that I became a personal trainer and a running coach in the first place. I loved writing about fitness, but I wanted to be responsible with my message, so I got certified to add some authority to my blog.
I ultimately wanted more training in fitness and coaching so that I could write a stronger blog. I got certified in 2015 to train and coach in personal training, running, and nutrition habits. It helped my journey, provided a wealth of blog content, and allowed me to earn extra income by taking on clients.
I'm aligned with my passion for health and fitness, but I may not have been focusing on my unique gifts.
I am coming to realize that in-person clients may be a slight distraction from my true alignment. While I honestly love training in person, it can be mentally exhausting in a way only an introvert can understand. It is fulfilling, but it leaves me mentally exhausted.
If you are my current client and reading this, don't worry, I still love you, I don't have any intentions of making changes in my existing client base or schedule. But with my new focus on alignment, I am not going to take on many new in-person clients, and instead double down on freelance writing, growing the income potential of this blog, and skill development in SEO (search engine optimization).
I will be highly selective in the clients I take on. My time training other people will continue to be an essential part of my growing and learning process. A trainer who has only studied textbooks will never be as an effective communicator as a trainer who has worked with people. Clients give me an outside perspective on the problems people face and help me develop my unique training style as I help them overcome obstacles to meet their goals. It will just be a smaller part of my strategy for business growth going forward.
This new alignment is a slight shift, so it's time to reexamine my goals and make new goals to end the year strong. I know the end of the year is a busy time, and it's easy to get distracted, so I am giving myself two primary goals for the end of the year.
My End-of-Year Resolutions
Primary Goal: Double down on barbell strength training to increase mass by five lbs by the end of the year.
Work with a coach for accountability, continued strength progression, and safety.
Strength train three times per week. Miss no workouts without sufficient reason ('I don't feel like it' is not sufficient).
Reduce running mileage to focus solely on my new goal.
Subgoal in support of my main goal: Tighten up my diet without going to extremes. Focus on whole food nutrition, increased protein intake, and balanced macro-nutrients to meet my strength goals.
Periodically track my intake on an app to ensure I am staying on track for my goals without obsessing.
Drastically reduce restaurant meals to less than once a week.
Clean up snacking. Hunger is not an emergency. Get enough nutrient-dense calories in each meal to reduce my intake of the types of snacks that don't bring me closer to my goals.
Continue with no alcohol for sober October. I don’t drink a lot anyway, but one month of no alcohol helps me break the habit of reaching for a glass of wine on the weekends.
In November and December, eliminate alcohol except for special occasions (i.e., Friday night is not a special occasion) to more effectively recover from my workouts and meet my goals.
Turn off my phone after eight pm to prepare for quality sleep that is necessary to recover from my workouts.
Increase protein by another 20 grams per day to support my goals.
Allow indulgences when it involves quality time and celebrations with friends and family. My goal is to not swing too hard in either direction; moderation is the aim.
Primary goal: Align with my passion for health and fitness writing. Increase income related to blogging and fitness freelance writing by the end of the year.
Subgoal in support of my main goal: Work on reducing wasted energy spent on social media to more effectively use my free time to pursue the activities that are in alignment with my goals and purpose
Finish my online SEO course by spending at least 30 minutes a day (more if needed) on the lessons
Plan out social media posts for the week in advance so that I can post and log off
Replace mindless scrolling with reading books or writing in the evenings
Remove the Facebook app from my phone (Gasp!)
Post three quality blog posts or fitness articles for other sites per week
Subgoal in support of my main goal: Actively pursue and pitch paid freelance writing opportunities in the health and fitness space. In the past, I have had a lot of fabulous opportunities, but have been guilty of passively waiting for them to come to me.
Pitch article ideas to health and fitness magazines or websites.
Respond to HARO (help a reporter out) requests weekly to provide expert quotes and opinions.
Pitch health and fitness brands on sponsorships.
Accept that rejection is part of the game.
Writing your goals can help you reach them. I'll print this out and hang it on my fridge. It's easy to get inspired, then fall back into old habits once a bit of time has passed.
10 STEPS TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
Clearly define your goals and time frame to succeed.
Break any large goals into smaller goals that will take you one step closer to your big goal, and you can achieve in a one to three month time period. (i.e., if you want to run a marathon, run 80 miles the first month of training -or whatever mileage is appropriate for your experience and skill level.)
Write them down. Read them at least twice a day.
Think through the daily or weekly actions that will get you closer to those goals, and how you will fit them in your schedule and create sub-goals.
Take small actions every day toward your goals.
Think through the obstacles you will encounter. What went wrong in the past, what could go wrong now, what will you do differently this time?
Keep an awesomeness journal. Take a blank notebook and write down every time you do something towards your goal that makes you feel good, every success, every compliment, every positive outcome, no matter how small. When you think negative, read your journal to remind yourself you are awesome most of the time. (I learned this one from Coach Greg McMillan.)
Think about what will go right. Believe you can do it. Have faith in your abilities to achieve it, even in the face of failure or stumbles. Accept less than perfection. Keep moving forward.
Hire a coach or tell someone about your goals, and ask them about theirs. An accountability partner can help you to succeed.
Get to work. Show up every day in support of your goal.
Are you screaming at me that it's too soon to set resolutions? I might be three months early for new year resolutions, but it will set me three months ahead of the crowd in the new year, and I'll be ready to tackle next-level goals (maybe write that book?). Are you doubling down on your goals for the end of the year?
Did you stay with me through all of that? Whew. Thank you! I honestly hesitated on pressing publish; it is a lot to put out there. I certainly have work to do.
I invite you to join my FREE nine-week healthy habits holiday challenge. Sign up to receive one email a week with a new habit that can easily fit into your life in the last nine weeks of the year. It is designed to help you become more mindful about the choices you make over the holidays, but not to deprive you of anything. I'd love it if you joined us to finish the year strong.
Did you like this post? Do you know someone who might benefit? It helps me when you share with your friends and followers on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.
Questions? I’d love to help.
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