The Reluctant Athlete: Because You Can't Lose Weight By Snapping Your Fingers

Trust me, I've tried.

I can be a very 'go big or go home' type of person so setting goals, per se, has never been a problem for me. Setting a goal of losing 125lbs is easy. In fact, it's as easy as typing it: I'm going to lose 125lbs. Bam. Goal = set.

My challenge (and the challenge for many people) is in setting up all the route markers that take me to that goal and holding myself accountable to them. What do I need to do to achieve that goal? What will I do if I fall off track of doing those things?

While the big goals are fun to set, they're not practical without the route markers or smaller goals. So the first thing I did when I recommitted to becoming healthier was sit down and set out my road map to how I was going to reach that big goal. I set three monthly goals. I also set up some weekly goals, but those change week-to-week as I determine what is a healthy change I can make that week to see improvement.

I want to see a 10 lbs loss every month, but I will be happy with 8

I know that 10 lbs is do-able, especially at my current weight - hell, it wouldn't take too much effort the first couple of months to push and strive for 12 lbs at the start - but I also know that the next three months of work are going to consume me. I want 10 lbs, I will aim for 10 lbs, I expect 10 lbs, but if the best I can do during this time of massive change in our company is 8 lbs, then I will be happy with that.

Anything less than 8? Well, we'll cross that bridge if we come to it. Which we totally won't. Right, Andrea?

How do I keep myself accountable to this? I'm weighing in every week (Wednesday mornings, if you care to know) and then texting certain people. These are all people who will appropriately cheer when I go down but also send the WTF? text when I start heading the wrong direction.

I will commit to at least 4 hours of physical activity every week

Okay, this is a 'weekly' goal but those goals are more 'I ate out every lunch last week so this week, I brown bag it every day'. You know, goals that are small adjustments to get me back on track. Not long-term commitments.

If I go to every kickboxing/bootcamp session, then I've reached this goal - and I want to go to every kickboxing/bootcamp session - but it's busy season at work and there will be times when that just won't be feasible because of deadlines and such. Currently (well, up until last week), if I didn't make it to class then I didn't do anything else. This is kind of ridiculous. 

I live in a fantastic walking neighbourhood with a beach a decent distance (and down a sizable hill which is always fun to come up) from me. I have BC's Government House with its wonderful chip trails that I can walk/slowly jog around (also with plenty of inclines). I don't have to do the replacement activity that night I don't make it to the gym, but I have to do it. That's the point.

I will keep a food journal and will follow an informal WW plan

I did WW once and was very successful. Then I did WW and only stuck with it long enough to get all the intro material before I bolted because the only meeting I could commit to going to every week was a who's who of SNL characters. I just couldn't take sitting through those meetings anymore and not being allowed to laugh when certain people started talking.

I dusted off the old (no-longer-in-vogue) program booklets, made a few notes of the recipes listed in them that I liked, and have been mentally tallying up points at the end of each day. I haven't been totally amazing at keeping on top of this so far because GISHWHES! WORK! LAZY! I did honestly give myself until after GISHWHES to start actively keeping a food journal, but this week has really just been laziness (although I have actually been eating very well and keeping portions in control so yay me for eating like an adult) but that changes tomorrow. What? I forgot my snazzy journal cheap notebook at home this morning!

Accountability:

The accountability for all of these also comes in the form of a monthly blog post. I would do weekly, but I get bored when other bloggers post weekly weigh-in numbers. There's a good chance you'd get bored if I did that. I do plan to do weekly posts under The Reluctant Athlete tag, but I'll only make a point of talking about these items once a month.

Otherwise, this blog will continue to be a centre of random useless posts.

If you made it all the way through that wall of text, have a dancing baby Groot (which is kind of, sort of spoiler-y but whatever. WHY HAVEN'T YOU SEEN GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY YET?):