Turn that Resolution Into a Reality

It's time to leverage the freshness January brings to create some resolutions and goals for the coming year. Of course you can be successful without a resolution, and you can start working on your goals after January, but why not take advantage of the newness of the year? Whether you're a resolution lover or a resolution skeptic, there are 5 strategies for success here to help you accomplish your goals this year!

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The Best Resolutions Start out as a Fleeting Thought

When you think about your life, how many times do you have thoughts like, "I really should ___," or, "I wish I could ___," or, "It would be nice if ___." Sometimes the things we really want to see happen seem too big, too hard, or too out of reach so we just let those thoughts float on through our minds, only to let them go.

The only trouble with that is, they usually come back again and again and we continue to cycle those vague hopes and wishes through our minds. What starts out as a light-weight, hopeful dream can become a bit heavier to carry every time we think about it and realize we haven't done anything about it. Dreams are meant to be full of hope, not to become burdens and regrets. So how do keep those dreams from becoming a burden?

Write it down.

A written resolution is a way to grab hold of one of those thoughts and set an intention for what you want to do about it. Writing it down is actually the first step on the journey to what you'd like to accomplish. So if you've been having thoughts pass through about your weight or your health, whether they feel full of hope or not, I'd encourage you to grab those thoughts and get them down on paper! There's something about writing things down on paper that makes them feel more concrete and helps your brain stop cycling the thought through. So scribble that thought down on paper.

You may have already done this, but if you haven't had a chance to check out the "A New Way to do the New Year" blog post, now is the time! Using the thought you've written down, the post will walk you through the process of turning the quick scribble into a full fledged resolution. A well defined resolution is the foundational step of turning your hope into a reality!

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One Step at a Time

By following the resolution framework, you've taken that broad hope (ex. weight loss) and turned it into a plan with doable action steps. Looking at that list of steps can feel a little overwhelming, but the only way to accomplish it all is one step at a time. To use a food based illustration, think of your resolution like a meal on a plate. Writing out your resolution served the food onto the plate. Now, the only way to consume the plate of food is to eat it one bite at a time.

With resolutions we get excited and want to work on all of the steps at once, but it's important to not "bite off more than we can chew"! And that's true even if you're working on one resolution. Sometimes we bite off more than we can chew by trying to tackle more than one resolution at a time, or by trying to take all of the steps for all of the resolutions we have at one time. We think that will get us to the 'finish line' faster, but it usually ends in burnout and 'failed' resolutions. Take what might feel like the slower route and work on one step at a time. Those little steps will add up to your resolution becoming a reality.

5 Strategies For Success

The steps and structure in your written resolution are foundational, but it's a little more complicated than 'just get it done,' right? Things happen, challenges pop up, or maybe the way we feel about the plan changes along the way. Starting a resolution always feels a bit thrilling and often the motivation for taking steps can come from that excitement. But we need some strategy for when the thrill wanes a bit, or when we run into a challenge.

I know it's not exciting to talk about challenges when we're thinking about a new year and new dreams for the year, sorry about that, but I'm here to actually help! And in the real process of seeing a resolution through, a challenge or two will inevitably pop up. But if you have these strategies on board, those things can feel like a little bump in the road instead of a complete roadblock on the way to your destination!

STAY COMMITTED

Getting started is exciting isn't it? A fresh new resolution comes with the fuel to get started, and when a resolution is accomplished it's also thrilling! What about when you're in the middle of the process? The middle zone isn't always exciting. So what will you do when you're there? No matter which way your feelings go in the process, you'll stay steady when you've already made a decision to see the resolution through. So anchor yourself before you begin by deciding that you're going to stay committed to the process until your resolution becomes a reality!

Tip: Keep that written resolution with you! You could even sign and date it to remind you of the day you decided to go for it! Keeping a physical reminder of your resolution that you can see will help you remember what you want to accomplish and why you got started.

STAY FOCUSED

Once you've committed to a resolution, distractions will try to come. Distractions don't always look like something negative or challenging, it's actually the new and exciting things you have to watch out for! Anything new- whether it's a new resolution or a new project idea- can come in and tempt you to start focusing on that instead of staying steady with the one you've already committed to. Don't let distraction steal your focus, but keep your eyes on what you want to accomplish!

Tip: If you ever feel a little distracted or lost in the process, take a look at your written resolution! It will refresh your focus when you remember the hopes and dreams that got you started.

STAY FLEXIBLE

Part of the beauty of your written resolution is that it acts almost like a roadmap. It gives you steps to take while also reminding you of where you want to end up. But sometimes you need to make adjustments to the plan along the way! If one step doesn't get you the desired result you were looking for, be willing to try again with a different approach! It works well to stay focused on what you want to accomplish while staying flexible about the process. Staying flexible about the process will help you will get you to your goal faster and keep you happier in the process!

Tip: Not sure how to know when it's time to try something different? This is where doing your resolution journey with an expert as your guide will be very helpful. For example, with weight loss, sometimes things look like they aren't working, but if you stick with it a bit longer you'll see positive change, and then sometimes you simply need to try something different altogether! To avoid confusion about the process, do your journey with an experienced guide (ex. Registered Dietitian at GRDN)!

STAY CONSISTENT

Little things done consistently over time can bring about big change! It's better to do one little thing consistently than to start 10 steps of your resolution at once, do them all well for 7 days, and then burn out. Protect yourself from resolution burnout by embracing small and consistent changes from the start! Again less flashy, I know, but an accomplished resolution ultimately feels better than a flash-in-the-pan effort that leaves you exhausted with an undone resolution, right?

Tip: If your resolution involves changing your lifestyle, make one change and be consistent with it for 1-2 weeks (at the fastest) before adding in another change on top of that. The changes will build upon one another, but this method eases you into making a lot of changes over a shorter period of time in a more sustainable way.

STAY IN CELEBRATION

Celebrate every step you take towards your goal. I mean that, every step! When you take one step, even when you think it's not worth celebrating, stop for a moment and just acknowledge what you've accomplished. Celebrating in the process is key. It has a way of infusing you with motivation to continue taking steps toward your goal. Be happy with where you are, while still pressing toward where you want to be.

Celebration is important when the final goal is met, but it should not be the only point of celebration! We often think that by withholding rewards and encouragement from ourselves until we fully meet that big goal that we're helping ourselves to say motivated. That works well for smaller goals and resolutions, but not so well for the ones that involve a longer process! If you have a big resolution you want to accomplish, waiting to celebrate means you'll probably run into dissatisfaction and fatigue, instead of motivation, when you're in the middle of the process. So don't wait, celebrate now and later too!

Tip: Celebration can look like stopping and writing down an accomplished step, sharing your accomplishment with a friend, or even buying a little something as a reward. Celebrating looks different for everyone, so find a way to acknowledge your progress in a way that works for you!

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Take these real-deal strategies on your way to turning that resolution into a reality! I hope it's been helpful for you as you look forward to this new year with new hopes and dreams for the year. Take the tools from the resolution framework and from this post and just enjoy the process on the way to seeing your resolution become a reality! Feel free to message me through chat or through the contact page- I would love to hear what you're working on this year!

I wrote this post so that it can help you no matter what your resolution is, but at Get RD Nutrition I'm here to specifically help you with your weight management and health goals! Do you have any of those on your list for this year? If you have a big goal for yourself, or even a small one in those areas, reach out and see how GRDN can support you through your process so that you can get that resolution turned into a reality in your life!

Get RD Nutrition is a virtual nutrition counseling practice for residents of North Carolina- offering weight management counseling, right where you are!

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