The other night, I happened to catch the season finale of The Biggest Loser. I’m usually at work when the show is on, but I saw it for the first time during one of our big snow storms. I guess that was towards the beginning of the season.
Having recently undergone my own weight loss journey, I was amazed at the exercise routine of these very obese people. Without a doubt, they had to have the show hosts after them non stop in order to achieve their goals. Those that didn’t meat their weekly goal got bumped off the show.
When I saw these folks at the end of the series, having lost an unbelievable amount of weight, I was impressed. They didn’t look like the same people. They have a lot to be proud of, and I hope they are able to keep the weight off. It’s an ongoing battle, and will be probably for the rest of their lives.
I’m bringing this all up because I think that it’s very important to set goals for yourselves, and then keep following through until you achieve them. Maybe your issue isn’t weight, but rather you want to find a new job, or you want to get out of debt. Whatever it is for you, start setting up some reasonable goals.
I say reasonable because if you begin with false expectations, you’ll quickly give up and go right back to where you were, or maybe worse. I’m guessing none of us have the luxury of personal trainers like the ones on Biggest Loser. We’re probably going to have to do it on our own.
For me, achieving my goals by myself has been hugely rewarding. I studied up on what I needed to do, got some good advice, and set reasonable and measurable goals. These weren’t long range goals, but weekly, even daily. When I met a goal, I celebrated. When I missed one, I went back and figured out why, then worked on it again until it was accomplished. This was not easy. Achieving good goals usually never is.
Do you have some things you need to work on? Summer is a pretty good time to develop a plan, since things slow down a bit and you can focus. There are tons of resources, including 974 titles at Amazon to help you. Or, you can do it the old fashioned way. Put pen to paper, and write them out. Don’t forget to ask for a little Divine Assistance. It always helps!
The experts say this step of writing goals out is important. If you don’t you’re almost surely doomed to failure.
Lastly, you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. Bring God into it. Watch what happens 🙂