Goal Setting

Good morning! Dr. Glen here with your Monday morning motivation. As we find ourselves halfway through the year, it’s time for our six-month check-in on our health goals.

The Importance of Goal Setting

Goal setting is crucial in our journey towards better health. In January, we laid out our health goals for the year, and hopefully, you’ve been reviewing them regularly. If you’ve had any goals that no longer resonate with you, it’s okay to let them go and make room for new ones. This halfway mark is a great time to recommit to the process and ensure you’re actively working towards achieving your goals.

If you haven’t joined our goal-setting program yet, I strongly encourage you to do so!

The Power of Adaptability

Remember, our bodies are completely adaptable. We can create the health that we want, but this adaptability takes time. While we often seek quick fixes in today’s society, true health changes are long-term plans. They involve our bodies learning to respond and adapt to the environment in a better way.

The Journey Towards Better Health

In healthcare, we sometimes see immediate results. For instance, if you have pain in the morning, you might take a painkiller and notice the changes by the afternoon. However, these are not changes in your level of health. They are effective remedies, but they don’t improve your overall well-being.

The Pitfalls of Unrealistic Expectations

It’s easy to fall into the trap of expecting quick and dramatic results when it comes to our health goals. However, this mindset can set us up for failure and disappointment. Real, lasting change takes time, often up to 12 months or more, to become significant and noticeable.

The biggest stumbling block on the path to reaching our healthcare goals is setting unreasonable expectations. This can lead to perceived failure when these high expectations aren’t met, causing a loss of interest and motivation.

Let’s take weight loss as an example. It’s common for this goal to top the list in January, but many are disheartened when they don’t see immediate results.

The Reality of Healthy Weight Loss

Healthy weight loss programs advocate for losing one pound a week. If you’re checking in daily or even weekly, it’s easy to become frustrated as the difference week to week may seem insignificant. After a month of diligent work, you might only lose four pounds – which can feel like a failure, leading to a loss of interest and a return to old habits.

However, someone who understands the process and is committed to a year-long program knows not to expect much change in the first month. But imagine the end of the year – losing one pound a week adds up to 52 pounds in a year. That’s a significant, impactful change to your overall health and wellness and a fantastic motivator going into the next year to continue making positive changes.

Resetting Your Expectations

So, if you’re thinking about making health changes this summer, remember to set reasonable expectations. Understand that the journey is long, but the results will be well worth it.

If you’re interested in our goal-setting process, feel free to drop me an email. Let’s make this year the best yet for your health and wellness.