What kind of environment are you in?
An important aspect to successful goal attainment is to make sure your internal and external environments are conducive to the results you wish to see. If these aspects aren't aligned with your desired goal then struggle will follow.
Here's three strategies you can implement right now to help cement the hard work you're putting in with your training and nutrition. If you're struggling to get results these three things might also offer some clues as to what you may need to address to get things going in the right direction.
1. Make your home/kitchen ‘fail proof’
If your cupboards and fridge are full of processed foods then it’s going to be very hard for you to lose weight when you open that door and all that’s starring back at you is a plethora of insulin spiking, body fat inducing processed carbs. Be brave and throw them out! Stock your fridge, freezer and pantry full of whole foods including fresh or frozen veggies, fruit and grass-fed meats, nuts and spices! Have home-made meals in the freezer so you can have a quick go to meal when you can’t be bothered cooking or life gets busy. Cooking in bulk on the weekend is an excellent way to stock your fridge and freezer for the coming week saving time and effort so you don’t have to stress about what you’re going to have for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
2. Get some cheerleaders, ditch the hecklers
Do your friends and family support the goals you’re aiming to achieve? It's hard to achieve your goals when the people closest to you have either no idea what you're trying to achieve and therefore unknowingly sabotage your efforts, or they do know but choose to actively sabotage your efforts by offering up all sorts of unhelpful food options. The big thing here is to be proud of what you're trying to achieve and to let your family and friends know what you’re doing and more importantly let them know what they can do to help you! Tell them you’ve ditched pasta, tell them you're drinking water now instead of alcohol or soft drink, ask for smaller portion sizes, if they don’t like it then don't feel guilty about your choices stick to your guns and your plan. When you've achieved your goal(s) and they see how happy you are and how awesome you look then the hecklers will stop heckling and may even come to you for advice! As much as you can try and surround yourself with people that support what you're doing and tell them how they can help.
3. Tune in to ‘radio-station you’
Did you know that you talk to yourself more in one day than you do to anyone else? These 60000+ thoughts we have flowing through our heads each day directly impact our beliefs and shape what we do and don't achieve in our lives. Thoughts and beliefs drive the whole show, they drive our actions and therefore shape our outcomes. If you’re trying to steer yourself towards being fit, fab and lean and you have negative thoughts and self-doubt driving the show then I’m afraid to say it but you’ll be fighting an uphill battle. Stinking thinking and positive outcomes rarely coexist.
With repeated failures comes the tendency for us to prophesize the future and predict our own demise. These past experiences fill our heads will all sorts of doubt, fear and negativity and contributes to self-fulfilling prophecies of continued failure which then fuels that belief system even more. What if instead of focusing on the lack of desired outcome (failure) you asked yourself "what can I learn from this experience?" After all there's no such thing as failure only feedback! If you look hard enough there's always a lesson to be learned. If you've tried the same way to get results multiple times with limited or no success, then try a different way! You may be one or two small tweaks away from success. Look at WHY you didn't achieve your desired results and then make a plan that address those 'whys'.
Awareness is the key to change so tune in to the voice in head. Is the majority of your self-talk negative or positive? If it's negative, then you can reframe these thoughts through positive thinking and affirmations and if you're really struggling with deep seated negative beliefs then learning and practicing EFT can really help shift these negative beliefs making room for more empowering thoughts and emotions.
Keeping a gratitude journal is another excellent way of transforming your stinking thinking into a mindset of positivity and empowerment. Each morning or night write down 5 to 10 things that you are grateful for in the day to come or the day just been. Over 2-3 weeks of practicing gratitude you'll find yourself experiencing more positive and empowering thoughts and this will lead to changed (positive) outcomes. What you focus on expands so if you focus on negativity, you'll get more negativity. Focus on the positive and the positive things expand!
By cleaning up both your internal and external environment you can create a far less frustrating and a much more rewarding and successful journey towards your health and fitness goals. Be brave, be aware and throw out what's not working for you (both externally and internally) and find foods and thoughts that support your desired outcomes!
