Heather,
Thea and I hosted a small group discussion at
Fitbloggin’ Denver this year called Eat, Move, Love: Finding Yourself without
Losing Your Mind. The session went really well. And although we didn’t
necessarily get to discuss all outlined bullet points behind the topic we still
had an hour long session filled with great ideas, comments and feedback. I
really enjoyed it and you can read a recap of it
here.
But because this topic is so meaningful to me I wanted to
pull the themes we based it around into a recurring blog post. Today’s theme
will be: setting your priorities
honestly and realistically.
I should start off by
saying that although the session was led by myself, Thea and Heather the
opinions shared regarding topics I discuss here are my own. Not saying that
Thea and Heather disagree, just saying that I am the only one contributing
here.
Honest and Realistic Priorities
What does that even mean?
Well, to me that means that the priorities I am setting for
myself are what I actually want to achieve and can be achieved within my
constraints. My priorities are reflective of the life I want to lead.
Let’s look at this from a goal-setting perspective for
examples….
I kind of think of it this way- although something may be a
realistic and achievable goal it might not be something I would actually want
to do. Case and point (I feel like I have used these examples before- sorry for
the repetition) – doing an unassisted pull-up. Is this a realistic goal for
me (in terms of fitness) I would say yes. I think with enough time and training
I could do an unassisted pull up. BUT if I am being honest with myself I would
know that spending all my fitness time and training focused on achieving this
goal would really not be fun for me. I like variety. So setting this as a
fitness goal would not honestly be something I would want. On the flip
side- qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Running a marathon is honestly one of
my goals (once I have the time to dedicate to the training miles hopefully fall
2016) but realistically I will never be a fast enough runner to qualify for
Boston. I just won’t. I am physically not designed to be an efficient runner.
And I am ok with that. I like how I run, I like being able to meet and achieve
personal goals. But I am also not naive enough to think I could ever BQ. To me,
that would not be a realistic goal.
So, given these two examples you see how I have
differentiated between realistic and honest. Here is what this translates to in
my life.
My priority this week
is to make every meal from scratch using only organic, local foods (from my
garden preferably) – no processed foods, stick to the meal plan.
Is this a good priority for me to set? NO! Because it is both unrealistic (I have neither time nor the
means to accomplish this) and not really honest either (I enjoy a break from
eating in every meal, I like to dine out or grab a beer once in a while).
Instead my priority would be: meal plan and make weekday meals at home. Limit processed food. Follow 80/20
for eating out. Drink only on the
weekend. In this case this as a priority that would work for me because I do
have the time and means to prepare my meals during the week, even when limiting
processed foods, and I can honestly stick to it knowing that I have the built
in flexibility for a meal or drink out a couple times during the weekend.
My priority this
month is to lose ten pounds
Is this a good priority for me to set? NO! I mean, for my
size, I think 10 pounds in a month is unrealistic. Even at the early stages of
my weight loss journey I wasn’t losing 10 pounds in a month so it would be
silly of me to think I could do so now, at least not in a healthy manner.
Also, if I am being honest with myself, do I want to set a number goal? Not
really. I am trying to move past that ‘controlled by the scale’ mentality. Setting
my priorities around a number goal would be counter effective.
Instead my priority would be: spend the next month finding joy in movement. Eat well for my body and
to support an active lifestyle. Do what brings me (honest) happiness. If this was my priority (which it actually
is) then I could create goals and build ideas to help support it. Meaning, set
a goal to do yoga at least twice a week, incorporate more raw meals- maybe
breakfasts and lunches during the week, schedule time for self-care and
activities I truly enjoy doing. I would still schedule and plan, because I
think routine works for me, but my priority is better aligned with what I want
and what I have the ability to do.
The two things I mentioned are my current life priorities
when it comes to health, wellness and fitness. I have other priorities too
which revolve around school, work and social stuff. I think it is important to
take time to make sure the priorities you set for yourself are realistic and
honest, otherwise you won’t be able to maintain them.
What are your priorities? Do you ever fall into the habit of setting
priorities that are neither realistic nor honest? How do you combat this?
Love and hugs,
Dacia
xoxoxox
