“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.” – Tony Robbins
Just to review our steps so far the first three items on our successful journey are:
First – Decide you want to make the change.
Second – Announce it to the world.
Third – Set several goals. Set your ultimate long-term goal. Set realistic, obtainable but not too easy, interim goals.
I did this by getting a piece of paper out and writing down my goals. The goal sheet then when on the refrigerator as a constant reminder.
The format I chose was this:
Goal: I want to weigh 188lbs or less. (overall)
By: 1 year from today
So that: I will decrease or eliminate my blood pressure medicine. My yearly physical will show improvement of my blood levels to include: sugar, cholesterol, sodium levels and fatty liver. I will feel better about myself, look better, have more energy and live a healthier happier lifestyle.
Measurement: I will weight myself weekly to ensure I am making progress on my goal. I expect to lose more weight in the beginning and less weight as I progress. I understand that a healthy rate of loss is 1-2lbs per week.
This was my overall goal and how I laid it out. I broke it down to its components. They are: Goal, BY, So That, Measurement. You will notice that they are as specific as possible. The more specific you are the better focus you demonstrate and the easier it will be to determine if you are meeting your goals or not.
I defined an overall goal and several interim goals. Using the same format for each. Once I reached my goal, I checked it off the list and went to the next goal. My interim goals were under 250, under 225, under 210, Under 195 and then my ultimate goal.
I celebrated my success at each goal. I publically announced my goals and I shared my successes as I reached them. I found a lot of support in many different places and some places I never expected to find. I remember distinctly one day working out at the gym; I had already lost 65lbs before even entering the gym (more on that later), this man that I had never met before came up to me and said “I see you working so hard in here every time I come in. I can see the changes to your body already. I just wanted to say that I am proud of you.” WOW! That was powerful. A complete stranger has told me that he was proud of me and I’m sure he didn’t even know the struggles I was facing. It was such an act of kindness; he kept me motivated that day and every day that I have thought about him since.
I also found some resistance in places I didn’t expect to encounter it. This process of transformation CHANGES you. Some people don’t want you to change; they like who you are and they are afraid that when you change your life their place in it may change as well. And they are right, it may change. This is why step one is so important. Decide for yourself.
I promised you I would give you a tip to fire up your metabolism and I shall. Here is the second guideline for your plan.
First was – ONE PLATE per meal and fruit / veggies between meals.
Second – Eat breakfast within 1 hour of waking up. No more than 1-hour and DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST.
Why? Well, it put it simply think of your metabolism as a fire within you that burns your energy. During the night, when you are sleeping, that fire continues to burn but it tempers down. By morning, the fire is just coals. You need to stoke it to get it burning effectively again. Eating within 1 hour of waking does just that – stokes the fire within. NOT EATING or eating after an hour is up has the opposite effect. It keeps your metabolism slow all day.
Next week we will discuss more guidelines for you and I will briefly discuss the “E” word.
JR Fuller
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