My 10 tips for setting realistic health & fitness goals

1. Start small and keep the bigger picture in mind. If you want to lose a significant amount of weight, tackle it bit by bit; 5 or 10 pounds at a time.
2. Reframe your goal as journey or experience, not a trying task. Instead of “I need to lose 20 pounds before my cousin’s wedding,” say “I commit to working out 4 times per week from now until then”. Once you accomplish the latter AND find you have also lost the 20 pounds, it’s like double the sense of accomplishment!
3. Plan for how you will measure success. This depends entirely on your goal, but from the outset decide your method and frequency for tracking your progress. Perhaps you will weigh yourself once every two weeks, measure your bust, hips and waist every six weeks, or take a full-body selfie once a month; regardless of how or how often. This is important because it punctuates your journey and gives you milestones to look forward to and work toward. An extra slice of pizza during your cheat meal? Probably not, with a weigh in coming in three days!
4. Realize your goal requires you to make new choices every day. Keep making these positive choices that move you closer to your goal until it becomes habit. Ten times repeated = a habit.
5. You’ve made the amazing decision to make a change, now keep yourself focused, determined and strong by zeroing in on ideas like “growth,” “progress,” and “I can” – negative thoughts and a self-critical tone will not serve you.
6. Make yourself your own icon. Everyone needs a little inspiration, but aspiring for a tighter, rounder, better version of your butt instead of chasing Beyonce’s butt, means there is no way you can be disappointed.
7. Don’t expect anyone other than yourself to shake things up – it is your responsibility to keep your workouts and meals interesting!
8. If you hit a setback or obstacle, don’t let it bog you down. Acknowledge it and move forward.
9. Identify your barriers to success and develop a plan. Is the candy in your desk drawer calling out to you? Trash it! Are you noticing you have one too many glasses of wine when you go out with a certain friend? Rain cheque!
10. Remember, good things take time! Set a reasonable deadline to achieve your goal.

What new health and fitness goals are on your horizon? What can I offer to support you? Recipes, workouts, tips? Tell me what you need to succeed in the comments below.

Stay Positive About Your Body and Embrace It!

While you might think being nice to others and remembering to say thank you when someone says something nice or does something for you, it is equally important – if not more important to show yourself the same gratitude and compliment yourself on your body.

Really take a minute to think about when the last time you thanked your body for all that it does for you. Find a few quiet moments everyday to thank every part of your body from your hair to your toes. Thank it for doing it what it does and then take a few minutes to realize what your favorite parts of your body are and really embrace them.

In order to fully accept your body and embrace it, you must first realize that what you see in advertisements, movies and TV is not realistic. Not all women are born with body types that will allow them to be stick-thin. Remember that being healthy doesn’t necessarily mean you will be skinny, and the same goes the other way around.

There are three main body types: ectomorphs, mesomorphs and endomorphs. Understanding which one you are is the first step to fully accepting and loving your body. Ectomorphs in general have small frames with narrow hips and shoulders and are usually tall and thin. Mesomorphs have broad shoulders and carry most of their weight in the upper part of the body and endomorphs generally have more rounded shoulders and have a round appearance overall, and are more likely to be overweight. Genetics and predisposed body types cannot be changed, but they can be accepted and loved because they are what make you the wonderful woman that you are!

The following tips are positive ways to begin appreciating your body and embracing it.

• Exercise! Keeping active requires your body to be in motion and accomplish tasks, not only does this increase your positive energy, it also helps keep you and shape and helps you appreciate all that your body can do for you. Studies have found that engaging in exercise naturally increases the pride you have for your body.
• Compliment others. Complimenting other people has been shown in studies to help you see the good in yourself. Once you begin to compliment others regularly, you might see that you are more likely to start complimenting yourself!
• Gossip! And no talking badly about others is not what this means. It simply means when talking with your gal pals try avoiding talking about your bodies because this generally means talking about your body in a negative way –“I don’t like my hips, I don’t look good in such and such.” Find more fun topics to talk about.
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  From SkinnyMom.com