THE holiday season is over so let’s get motivated and lose some inches! For many people, holidays really mess up daily routines so now’s the chance to get back in the groove and get motivated to shift some inches!  I’m going to help you with a quick recap on goal-setting and a couple of tasks to kick you off!

If you’re a member of our private Slimpod group on Facebook, then Debbie is running some special motivational threads in there for the next few weeks.  If you’re not on Facebook then watch out for my blogs for the next few Mondays.

So, back to basics!

If you want success with anything in life you really should set goals. Why? Well a goal provides a target on which to concentrate your effort. Goals give you direction and allow your mind to focus on what you want to achieve.

By setting goals you’re also able to measure your progress because you have a start and finish date. They provide mental boundaries so you avoid distractions and remain focused on the goal. They make you accountable.

Now I’m very well aware that some people find goal-setting triggers all sorts of negative reactions.

This is usually because in the past they’ve failed to achieve their weight loss goals and now the very thought of setting a goal to lose some inches creates an instant obstacle and is far to painful to contemplate!

If this is you, I’d urge you to think about the process differently and use it as a feedback mechanism to help you measure progress rather than something that makes you feel a failure.

During the next few weeks I’ll be teaching you how to overcome this feeling so it’s no longer an obstacle stopping you from achieving your goals – it will be very exciting!

So we’ll kick off by thinking about the big goal.

When you’re creating your goal, please make sure it’s meaningful – knowing why you want this goal is essential because that’s what’s going to drive you!

Some ideas on goals to lose some inches

* A size goal. These are the BEST because it’s the clothes you’re wearing that tell the story.  Getting into that next size down would be the perfect goal!

* A weight goal.  Really not ideal because weight fluctuates for many reasons. Scales really have a habit of making you feel bad and should be abandoned and put in a cupboard!  This is about helping you to feel great!

* A health goal.  Some people want to get their diabetes under control…great goal!

The next step is to break the goal down into mini goals and this bit is easy because we’re all going to do it together.

For the next week I would like you to do just two things every day

ONE: Listen to your Slimpods EVERY day

Obviously, listening to your Slimpod (and other pods if you have them) is crucial if you’re to lose some inches and it’s one of the things many people find difficult to do every day.  Let’s make sure you make this a habit in the next 21 days!

It’s only 9 mins and you’ll be asleep in 2 mins so make it your first task to focus on this.  If losing weight is important to you then you’ll do it.  Set an alarm for the same time each day!  It really couldn’t be easier!

TWO: Write down three positive things that have happened in your day.

We ask you to write down three positives for two very good reasons.

1. Seeing is believing.  For the first few weeks the changes in your lifestyle and eating habits are magical – but if you’re a busy person they can go unnoticed if you don’t take two mins at the end of the day to write them down.Many people who have struggled with their weight for years have a very negative self-image.  A large part of the journey with our programme is to empower you to feel good about your “self” because feeling good IS so important to wellbeing and it’s empowering!

2. Writing down three good things that have happened in your day primes your mind to think more positively.  After a time this actually changes the brain and the changeability of the brain is known as neuroplasticity.  Every thought, regardless of what it’s about, creates chemical reactions in the brain, and when repeated often, structural changes too.  This is also why we ask you to listen to your Slimpod repeatedly.

Get yourself a lovely notebook to write your positives in. Here’s a great example.

So now’s the time to get to it and lose some inches! For the next seven days, feed back every day by using the comments section below or post on Slimpod Club on Facebook. I’ll be looking out for you!