We are all works in process. I stress this with every client, at every session. We all have things that trip us up, frustrate us and make us feel as though we will never get it right.
That’s because we will never get it ALL right. We will never have it ALL mastered. I’ve been on my fitness journey for over 14 years and I still have healthy habits that I sometimes “forget”. My own life and habits trip me up too. The key is to not dwell on them but learn what you can from these missteps, these bumps in the road. After all you can learn more from your “failures” than you can from success.
Lesson One:
Don’t focus on what you did wrong yesterday, focus on how you can do it better tomorrow.
I have days I don’t drink enough water. I will start with a full water bottle, do 2 clients sessions back to back and still have a full bottle. I’ll do my best to get through the bottle at lunch and refill for training. Then when I get home, I reach for my writing fuel – tea. I’ll try to get water in between cups of oolong or turmeric spice, which is easier when it’s hot but not so easy when it’s cold.
Sometimes by the end of the day I feel completely drained and dry. I know I haven’t had enough water but I refuse to chug before bed. If I do I’ll be up peeing all night long. So I reset and focus on doing better the next day.
Lesson Two:
Use cues of everyday life to remind you of healthy habits.
My fellow personal trainer and blogger (check her out at https://fitknitchick.com) Tamra has the same challenge with hydration.
Despite knowing how important it is to energy levels, feelings of satiation, performance in the gym, lustrous looking hair and beautiful skin, some days I’m just so busy on the gym floor training clients that I forget to take a water break! Not having to go to the bathroom all day should be a good reminder…
Lesson Three:
If it’s your weakness don’t have it in the house. Go out to enjoy your favorite treat but don’t bring it home.
If brownies are in my house, they will get eaten. I won’t eat the whole pan of vegan brownies but I do find reasons to eat one a day (Great post run carbs! I say). If they aren’t in the house, I don’t give them a second thought. I can keep other things in the house, like dark chocolate squares, with no issues. I can take them or leave them. But I forget how powerful the draw brownies is to my brain.
Lesson Four:
Brainstorm with others to overcome your challenges. There is strength in numbers!
Another of my peers, Kasey, (who blogs at https://wellofhealth.me/) has a sweet tooth, but uses it as a teaching moment with her clients.
As a personal trainer who strives to practice what I preach, I find it really difficult to cut out sweets altogether. My solution is to make healthier treats like banana “ice cream”, and my dessert discoveries lead to great conversations with my clients who struggle with the same problem. The truth is, you can still have a sweet tooth and eat healthy, as long as you are willing to be creative!
Lesson Five:
Never beat yourself up.
I occasionally forget to stretch? It’s not often because I really enjoy it at the end of a workout. But if I come in from a run and get busy with an email that comes in while I was out or if I have low blood sugar, I may forget my to streach. It might occur to me in the shower or hours later when my calves feel stiff. Sometimes I make it up, sometimes I don’t. Stretching is important but it’s not going to kill me if I miss it once in a while.
Just because you have an eating day that is less than perfect or skip a workout doesn’t make you are bad or you will never be fit. It just means you’re human.
