“I’ll start on Monday.”
“I don’t think I have time today, I will do it tomorrow.”
“I think I just need to wait until I have more time in my schedule.”
Do these things sound familiar to you? Do you find yourself making statements similar to this when it comes to your health and fitness, weight loss goals or in trying to eat better? If so, you aren’t alone. Many people believe that one of the biggest hurdles in the way of reaching their health success is lack of time. In reality however, for many people, it’s not a lack of time, it’s just poor use of time. Adopt one of these three time-management techniques to help you stop procrastinating and start doing!
Eat a Frog for Breakfast
It is probably pretty safe to say that your idea of a delightful meal isn’t a big green, juicy bullfrog. But if you had to have a frog, wouldn’t you rather eat it first and get rid of it rather than have it linger on? The same idea applies when it comes to prioritizing tasks and increasing productivity: start your day with the things that are the hardest, or that you want to do the least. In other words, eat a frog for breakfast! Set them up as the first part of your schedule and get them out of the way. Doing this not only means you are sure to get them done, since you start out with them first, but also means that they don’t loom over you for the entire day interrupting your productivity of other tasks and demands. For example, if you know you hate to exercise, get up 30 minutes earlier and get your exercise out of the way. It will be finished before you go to work, and you can take confidence from this productivity and success later in the day.
Make a Schedule
If you wait until the time appears and is free to go for your run, do your meditation or do your weekly meal prep, it will never happen. When something isn’t scheduled in and prioritized, it is not going to become your priority. Each week, make your health and fitness a priority. Block a time off on your schedule each day for working out, meditating or taking care of other self-care commitments, and block off a weekly time period to do your meal prep. Doing this makes sure it gets done, but also reinforces the degree of value and importance of the task, eventually making it so that it is something that you wouldn’t dream of missing out on!
Call in Help
It’s totally okay if you don’t have the motivation all the time to tackle your health and wellness goals by yourself. Sometimes it takes a boost from somebody else, a positive reinforcement from another person or someone else to be accountable to in order to have the motivation to get started. If this is the case for you, it’s time to find your tribe and put a plan into action. Find someone, or a small group of people who will support you in your health goals and who can be there to call on when you need them to be. Whether it is someone you can text, someone you meet up with at the gym, or someone who simply checks in with you regularly to make sure you are on track, find what works for you and make it happen.
Whatever it is that you are struggling with, and putting off doing, it’s time to get started. Commit to employing one of these techniques and start today to make progress. Tomorrow you’ll be happy you did!
By: Laura Peill, RHN, BScH – Viand Nutrition
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