Settling into 2022 and thinking about what we want to accomplish in this new year. Sometimes we think about it in terms of “goals” we set for ourselves, but I’d like to talk about getting clear about our values.
You see, goals relate to a destination and values relate to a direction.
In terms of fitness, I’d love to see you all have a direction that you can continue on forever.
If Person A & Person B both would like to lose 15lbs.
Person A has a goal of exercising 3 days every week and cutting carbs. To meet the goal, Person A may skip meals, restrict food, miss an important event to exercise, so that they meet their “goal”. And once that goal is met, s/he is done. This mindset leads to yo-yo dieting and stop-start exercising.
If Person B has values of health and compassion and enjoying life (for example), then there is no endpoint. If health is taking a front seat at the moment, they will choose (maybe) to fill their plate with more vegetables, to be sure to exercise daily, and make other choices that align with health being a priority. Because “enjoying life” is also a value Person B has, they may cut a workout short to go out to dinner for a friend’s birthday because this also aligns with their values. Person B can continue to practice healthy behaviors, have compassion for themselves when they do not, and continue to enjoy their life. Person B is more likely to stick to the values they set because they align with who they want to be.
Hopefully, this makes sense. If you want to dig more into this, do a little google search on “core values” and come up with some that resonate with you. Once you find some that work for your life, start applying them to decisions you’re making around food and exercise. I’d love to hear how it goes.
If you want to more info on this topic, join my training group, join my book club, where we’ll read books and discuss stuff like this or just get yourself a copy of Josh Hillis’s book Lean & Strong.
Nice!
thanks, scott!