New Years Resolutions

We are six days into the new year how many of you have made resolutions? How many have already broken them?

I’m guessing quite a few..General stats show that only 8% of people actually achieved there resolutions last year, don’t worry I didn’t manage any of them either.

Do not fret!

Another new year offers another opportunity to achieve you goals. Hopefully these tips will help you get back on track and keep them.

1. Make your goals specific. A lot of people say to “exercise more” But what does that actually mean? Do you intend to reach a certain weight? Do you want to run a 10k? Maybe be able to do 10 pull-ups? Try a set yourself a certain target

2. Measure your progress. “If you can measure it, you can change it” is a fundamental principal of psychology. These feedback loops will be a source of motivation as you reflect on where you started and where you are. They will also help you to know when you are hitting a plateau or slipping backward, so you can adjust your efforts.

3. Be patient. Some people will see rapid gains only to hit resistance later in their efforts. For others, initial progress may be painfully slow but then they suddenly achieve rapid breakthroughs. Making lasting changes takes time.

4. Share your goals with friends and family. One of the most effective things you can do is to get an “accountability partner”, someone who checks in with you daily or weekly. It’s easy to break a promise to yourself, but far harder to admit it to a friend.

5. Schedule it. Have you ever said you can’t “find the time” to do something. Nobody finds time, we make time. We all choose to spend our time the way we do—whether that’s eating junk food or going to a spin class. Make your new goals a priority and actually schedule them into your calendar. If you have a fitness goal schedule recurring time blocks for your daily workouts. Want to declutter? Schedule time to clean out your wardrobe or garage on your calendar. Treat these New Year Resolution’s as appointments just like they were scheduled doctor appointments. You rarely reschedule your doctor, you should treat your time the same way. That which is scheduled gets done.

6. Something is better than nothing. Are you guilty of “all or nothing” thinking? Do you ever think, “Well, I might as well get dessert since I already ate those French fries?” And then, “I blew my diet last night so I’ll just restart it next week.” The difference between doing something rather than nothing is huge. If you don’t have a full hour to workout at the gym, just decide to make it the best 20-minutes you can. If you stumble out of bed and don’t want to do 20-minutes on the treadmill, lace up your sneakers and do five minutes (and you just might find you do another 15 minutes once the first five are out of the way). Any effort towards your goal is better than no effort.

7. Get up, when you slip up. Legendary coach Vince Lombardi said, “It isn’t whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get back up.” Resiliency is paramount. Don’t turn temporary failures into total meltdowns or excuses for giving up. Instead, just acknowledge the mistake and recommit to the path towards the goal. Forgive yourself. Slipping is part of the process.

Achieving your goals isn’t about willpower. It’s about developing the right skills, executing strategies, and having the patience that inevitably lead to success. Will 2017 be the year you join the elite 8%? xxx

New Year. New You?

Firstly I’d like to apologise for not posting anything last week, I post my blogs on Fridays and as you all know last Friday was Christmas so I didn’t think anyone would be checking the internet too much. On that note I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

So it’s the beginning of a new year. How many of you have made resolutions? How many of you intend on sticking to these resolutions.?

I’ve never made a big deal about New Year’s Resolutions, but this year I feel like I’m more motivated, more determined so maybe if I make some resolutions or have certain goals to accomplish, I’ll actually stick to them and get somewhere….So my resolutions for this year are:

•Pass my driving test. I was never that fussed about driving until last year when I realised it’s becoming a necessity, I’ve missed out on job opportunities because of not being able to get to secluded set/shoot locations.

•Participate in one photoshoot a month. Now this doesn’t sounds like a lot and sounds very achievable. However when you have a full time job, a social life and other hobbies. It’s hard to fit these things in. As I want to pursue this a career I’m going to start looking at it in a different light, instead of saying ‘it’s hard finding the time’, I will simply make time.

•Join an amateur dramatics or take up singing lessons. Now this may seem a bit redundant to certain people. Although I have more modelling jobs, my degree in is theatre, my passion is theatre, more specifically musical theatre so I want to be involved with this once again. It’s been a couple of years since I have performed on stage so I am a little rusty, my vocals chords could do with a tune up.

Now when it comes to keeping said resolutions, it requires a bit more than excitement. It’s one thing to come up a list of goals, but practicing them requires just that – practice. Continue on with a positive but realistic attitude and you’ll manifest 2016 to be your most rewarding year yet! Here’s my couple of tips on how to do so:

•One thing at a time. Start small – you don’t need to try and do it all, especially in the first week. It’s overwhelming, and you’ll likely become so exhausted you lose your motivation. So scale back that list of 15 resolutions, or try to focus on one for the month of January, then add the second in February. Much more realistic to manage.

•Don’t follow what your family and friends are doing. They mean well, and they very well might have great ideas. But that’s what works for them. Remember that what they need is different from what you need. What they like may be very different than what you like. Focus on yourself, your unique.

•Be kind to yourself. No, you may not be able to twist yourself into Crow Pose in your first yoga class, but give yourself credit for trying. Love and appreciate yourself for all the amazing things you do.

•Remember – your body is your temple. It works hard to keep you alive and well. Now it’s time to love it back. Listen to its needs, then act accordingly. Your body will thank you by thriving! xxx