I’ve been talking about becoming healthier over the past 2 years, then when I got pregnant with Little Man that mindset for no other reason than just pure laziness went out the door. I gained over 40 lbs and no matter how much I wish I could say it just fell off after birth. I can’t, only about 10 of it came off. It was because I didn’t have plan, goals, plus I still wasn’t doing much. I can’t expect to see results if I don’t have a clear idea of where I want to go. Setting goals is the road map to success. It is what keeps me on track. Hitting these goals has made it easier as well for me at times when I feel that I’m not making progress. Being able to look back and say to myself “oh just stop already; you’ve managed to knock out these goals.”

Here are a few of my goals right now:

Long Term:

- Positiveness: This goal is VERY important to me. If you were to met me at the store or park you would think I’ve got all the confidence in the world. But reality is I’ve got about as much confidence to cover the tip of my pinky toe. I have a vast bucket of negative statements that I tell myself every day. It’s unhealthy and is affecting me as a whole. With that I will work harder at replacing every negative statement in my days with positive ones.

- Water: I have a horrible habit of even when my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth, I will either A. grab some soda/juice or B. I just ignore it and don’t go refill my cup. It’s not the ideal way to becoming healthier nor to see the poundage fall off. What I have found that works for keeping this goal is to actually download a water app. Yes that is right, I found an app for it. It goes off every hour to remind me to drink. Another trick that I found that works for me is using a straw. I will find myself sitting at the computer working and just sucking away without realizing it. Also, with breastfeeding the little guy; water is even more important to ensure that he is getting his needs met as well.

- Rest days: Since I’ve found that I lose my motivation on these days; I’ve decided to make this a goal of mine. To not accept these days as cheat days with no rules or limitations. Instead I will continue to strive to stay active, even allow a small cheat if need be but to keep it minimal, and throw in some yoga to stay flexible. If I can spend 20 minutes on the couch watching Bones with the hubs then I can spend 20 minutes doing yoga while still watching the show.

- Form: Another long term goal is to perfect my form. proper go for correctness knees behind the toes, back straight, don’t go for speed. Whats the point of hurting myself so that I’m stuck on the couch for weeks while healing.

Short Term:

- Inches: Instead of worrying about dropping weight, I’ve set a small goal of 1 to 2 inches off my waist in the next month. Keeping track of my inches and seeing the numbers grow smaller means that my muscles are tightening up. It’s showing me that the loose unhealthy fat is melting away and being replaced with healthy lean muscle.

- Scale: Allowing myself to measure my accomplishments by my pull to Earth is depressing. Seeing the numbers fluctuate daily can either make me smile or send me into a tailspin. Therefore I’ve set a goal to not step on the scale for a week straight. Maybe even push for 2 weeks or more. It’s unhealthy relationship that needs to be broken. I need to not set my accomplishments by that evil hunk of glass by the numbers that pop up.

- Real Food: Isn’t it funny how the more you read the more you learn and the more you learn the more you become empowered? With the knowledge that I’m gaining; I want so badly to cut out processed foods for a week. I want to test my shopping skills and eating habits. I want to build on this short term goal but let’s take it one step at a time.

- Run a 5k: Last October I signed up for a 5K with our teen. I was so jazzed, somewhat trained for it. Then the morning of it as I’m heading to it; the Army threw a wrench in my plans and there came all 3 of the little ones with no one to watch them so I could run it with ‘Tater I spent the morning on the side lines chasing kids, nursing the baby, and waiting anxiously for ‘Tater to cross the finish line. Since then every time I try to plan for a 5K something comes in the way; finances, child care, work, health. My goal this year is by July to have finally ran a 5K.

- Food Log: I don’t track my food to obsess over what I’m consuming, but more to make myself aware of what I’m eating. I’ve found for myself that if I am just eating whenever I’m eating whatever. So back to keeping a food log. I know realistically it won’t be 100% accurate but seeing the difference between fats, sugars, and carbs being consumed allows for me to make better choices of what I’m eating.

As time goes on my goals will change as I accomplish more, I’ll add more change them up. But for now these are my starting points. They will be my foundation to build upon. What are some of your goals whether short or long to help you on your journey to becoming a better you?

{if you have a moment I'd love for you to stop by Oh, Just Stop Already}