Are You On or Off?

Have you ever tried something new, felt great about it 1 to 4 days in and then on the 5^th day just found it much too difficult, detoured, got off the wagon and felt as if you had failed? Asking yourself what am I doing? Maybe you even found yourself in a corner wondering why you just couldn’t “get it right” this time around? Or maybe you felt that the “results” you were aiming to achieve weren’t being met quick enough that you said to yourself, “this is not worth it”?

Playing the other card, have you ever put your heart and soul into something hoping, and possibly expecting to get a certain set of results, and then the reward or outcome didn’t meet your expectations?

I know I went through many years with these constant stumbling roadblocks until I started learning about healthy nutrition and what I needed to implement into my lifestyle to allow me to set a goal to make it achievable and benefit me. Prior to learning this however, I felt as if I had failed myself and the people around me, until finally I started to recognize this important part of learning and growing. So guess what, if you have felt this way or had difficulties achieving a goal then you’re human! In our current world of needing to meet the expectations of so many people around us, it is important to remind ourselves that we are human and we may not be 100% successful at all times on the first go, but what we do next is the key – reflection.

And before jumping the gun on the things that may not have gone the way you wanted them to, recognize what did go right – or rather, what did work for your benefit! We are so quick to look at our failures while those successes fade off into the distance. Then allow yourself to recognize what may not have gone right so that you will be able to readjust your strategy or plan to help you get to your destination – don’t think the route will be easy – it often never is (especially things that are so completely worth fighting for) – this just allows you to feel that much more grateful at the end for your struggles, during the path and finally making it there.

Reflection is key here though – not over-analyzing. That could lead you towards manifesting too much negative emotions and the “wrongs” on our part. By reflecting, you allow yourself to look at the overall goal and the strategies you put (or did not put) into place to achieve your end result.

When you are making nutrition part of your lifestyle, we know that cutting out too much and depriving ourselves will often lead to failure. So instead of saying I am not going to drink pop anymore, look at an opportunity that allows you to have half of the amount of pop, or rather, look at what you can add. Adding in healthy habits, such as I am going to include a salad at dinner time moving forward, will often allow you to find more balance in your intake.

Consider your expectations: from yourself and from others. We have to remind ourselves of what our way of living is and be completely accepting of that. We expect a lot from ourselves. Sometimes too much. If you find yourself in a constant, “I can’t keep up with myself – my requirements, my needs, the needs from others, the demands from those around me. I can’t keep a thought in focus, and I can’t see past my things-to-do list because every time I cross something off, three new things are added” – then I suggest you give yourself the permission to take a step back and give yourself a break. Re-evaluate and reflect. Where are your priorities? Are your priorities being met or are others’ demands of you inhibiting you from achieving your goals and priorities?

Expectations from other people may also lead you down a path of anger and upset, if in the end the delivery does not live up to what our expectations from that person or a particular situation was. What’s important here is for you to simply be You. Do what you want to do for others or for yourself without any expectations in the end. When you can find that drive from your heart to go about and work towards achieving your goals, you become closer at recognizing your purpose. And then, when you end up getting more than you thought could be possible, it just drives you to getting on to your next goal or project.

2015 is drawing to a near.  Before the mad rush of the holidays starts to bring on a longer list of things to do, take some time over the next week or so to reflect.  What were your goals at the beginning of 2015? Did you achieve them? Were you challenged?  Do you need a different route?  Did other priorities sit higher on your list?  Or did you achieve them all?  What will you take on next?