Embarking on a wellness journey, from weight loss, caffeine reduction, to digital detox, can be daunting. We may be placing too much pressure on ourselves to achieve our goals!
Staying motivated to stay on the journey can be a challenge. There may be days when we feel we are on the right path and excelling, but there may be days when we just want to give up!
Here are some tips and tricks to help you stay on your wellness journey:
Write down your goals/ wellness wishes
The first step to committing to any goals is writing them down. When you write down your goals or wishes, you are bringing them to life as you are able to visualise them. When you are able to visualise your goals, your mindset and actions will change to support you on your journey.
Get support
Whatever your journey may be, when you surround yourself with people on a similar journey, it becomes much easier to motivate yourself and each other to stay on track on the wellness journey. It can be anyone in your household, to friends or colleagues! If there’s no one physically near you, then social media is an amazing platform to find support groups to keep you on track and it also helps with making you feel less alone. Another benefit of being part of a support group, it’s a great place to learn from one and to get better clarity if you are confused or unsure.
Accept you may have ‘off days’
When we start on a journey, we must accept that there will be ‘off days’. There may be days where we totally fall off the bandwagon. What is most important is that we accept them as learning experiences to improve ourselves for the future instead of calling them failures. If you have a setback one day, learn from it and restart the next day. By accepting your ‘off days’ you will further motivate yourself to stay on track.
Reward yourself
Since young, we have been conditioned that for every good deed done, we will be rewarded. This conditioning still holds true even as we age. Reward yourself for each time you achieve a milestone. For example, buying a new outfit when you’ve lost 5 pounds, getting your favourite dessert after you have completed a 10km run, or a massage after completing an hour of resistance training. Another trick that helps is the 80:20 rule. Make sure you are on your journey for 80% of the time, and 20% of the time, your ‘reward time’. By rewarding yourself, you recognise your achievements. Recognising your achievements will further motivate you to stay on track and it may further accelerate you to achieving your goals.
Eventually, you wouldn’t need to reward yourself as the healthy habits you are instilling will be part of you, becoming part of your natural daily habits, and if you miss them for a day, you’ll feel like there’s something wrong.
Focus on the journey
Last, but not the least, always focus on the journey or the process, not the goal. Enjoy the journey and express gratitude for the experience gained. This is true for everything in life, be it at work, school, or your wellness journey! Focusing on the goal or the outcome is tiring, mentally and emotionally, it may lead to burnout. Each time you feel like you have lost motivation, look at your journal, take note of the journey taken, and how far along you are. Celebrate the small victories! When you focus on the journey or the process, you will acknowledge how much has changed and it will make the journey much more motivating and enjoyable.
One extra and very important tip to add, be kind, compassionate, and patient with yourself. You are your biggest motivator and you must watch the way you speak to yourself. Speak to yourself the way you would to your loved ones!
