Ever feel like your get-up-and-go got up and went without you? You're not alone in your midlife motivational drought, but I'm here to share a secret: it's action that sparks motivation, not the other way around. Join me, Courtney, as we tackle the daunting peaks of our ambitions by scaling them down into manageable foothills. It's goal refinement time, and we're zooming in on a single aspiration, giving it the one-month royal treatment it deserves. With a personal strategy session that outlines mini-milestones and preps for potential hurdles (and a handy goal-setting worksheet from the show notes), we're turning the 'too hard' basket into a 'heck yes' plan. Get ready to embrace daily movement, strength training, or a nutrition overhaul with a simplicity and adaptability that feels like it's been custom-made just for you.
Transformations aren't just for caterpillars, and in this journey through midlife, your goals are due for a metamorphosis too. I'm not just talking shop; I'm inviting you to become an active player in our 'moving through midlife' community, where your goals aren't just written in the stars—they're planned, tracked, and celebrated on terra firma. Think of me as your personal assistant, mapping out the alignment of your monthly objectives with the grand ambitions of the year. With the 'moving through midlife' community at your back, we're sharing exercise calendars, cheering each other on, and fielding the curveballs life throws our way. So, whether you're slipping on your walking shoes or rewriting your life's to-do list, let's march forward into a year teeming with achievements and habits that not only last but enrich every step of the way.
Welcome to Moving Through Midlife. I am your host, courtney, a personal trainer and movement specialist who wants to help you move through midlife with more grace. Each week we will discuss ways we can show up better for ourselves and our children without the burnout. We will focus on overall health through habit stacking to help increase energy, provide movement snacks to help you move more throughout the day, while also moving your body more, and learn from professionals on moving through midlife with ease so that you can feel confident with aging. Gracefully, grab your earbuds and join me on a leisurely walk while we discuss moving through midlife. Have you noticed that the cheer things are a little bit quieter? I'm noticing that I'm not seeing as much information out there about goals and setting new goals and resolutions, and I think many people have gotten to the point where they have felt like they no longer work or just are kind of over that constant need of pushing for something specific like a calendar. Maybe you are feeling like you're not motivated. You're just feeling kind of blah. I noticed that with myself in this midlife moment that things just aren't resonating with me like they used to. I don't have the drive for certain things and I feel that would be the word that I want to use. I feel like I've become indecisive, not able to really think about something that I want.
Speaker 1:
Today, I want to talk to you about how action comes before motivation. Many people think like, oh, I just got to get motivated to do that workout or to reach that goal. I got to work on motivation, which is great if you can find that inner motivation which I did have when I was younger. But as you are entering this midlife phase, you may notice that you're lacking that motivation. Things aren't as exciting. It may not even be a midlife thing, it might be this other side of 2020. Things just aren't as motivating for you.
Speaker 1:
What can you do? You need to understand that action comes before motivation. What can we do to create action? I always like to start simple. Simple is going to be different for each and every one of us. Because I don't know where you are starting. I'm going to take it back to the basics just so we can go through this exercise. I want to let you know that there is a worksheet that you're going to work on as well. I will link it in the show notes for you that you can work on this as well during this or you can come back later. Honestly, you can do this mentally as well.
Speaker 1:
So I want you to think of one goal that you have thought that you wanted to work on this year, and I want you to take a step back from it and break it down into smaller goals, and we're going to do that together. So I am going to use the example that I want to exercise more and get in shape. Just say that, because that tends to be something that I hear from clients. So we are going to think about all the things that we need to do to exercise more. So I'm going to write down. This is like a little brainstorming moment for you.
Speaker 1:
Okay, so I think about all the things that I've heard about. Maybe it's I need to join the gym. I need to start an exercise program. I need to find someone on YouTube that I like their exercise programs and do that. I need to sign up for this challenge. I need to buy tennis shoes. I need to, whatever it is, go for a daily walk, whatever. I know that I need to do some strength training. Same thing if you want to eat healthier. Maybe some of the things is I need to eat more vegetables. I need to eat less processed foods. I need to eat out less. I need to start my day with protein. I need to drink less, right, okay? So you've got all of those. Write them all down. Just get pen to paper and write all the things down that you will need to do to reach that thing.
Speaker 1:
Above that, you created as your quote unquote goal. Now, from here, I want you to go back over that list of all the different things that you could do to help you reach that goal, because we're going to start small. We're not going to go all in, because that's where we get messed up, and this is only for a month. So this is going to change after a month. This is not something that you're going to do for the next year. This is something you're going to do for one month.
Speaker 1:
So what resonates for you right now in that box of all those different ideas, that is, if you are looking at the goal setting worksheet, that is the one thing that you're choosing from the above list and you're going to write it below, and this is it says you're closer to your focus goal. So this is going to be your focus goal, so to speak, and then you're going to move on from there. Now, once you find which one resonates with you, you're writing it down. So I'm going to say for mine, my goal was to move every day and I like, I think I want to start lifting weights. So my next thing is going to be like strength training. That's going to be something that I am going to write down as the action or the focus goal.
Speaker 1:
Now the next box says what actions do you need to take to reach that goal? Okay, so what do you now have to do? I need to either come up with a program for my strength training I need to find some videos, I like, of strength training. Maybe I need to grab some weights have them readily available so I'm going to put them in my kitchen or you know something like that, make sure that I buy the weights that I need. Whatever all of those tasks are that you need, what action do you need to take to reach the above goal? Not the one at the very top, but this one right in the above box.
Speaker 1:
Okay, now you are going to imagine that, all the things you're imagining, all the things that can get in the way of the above action. So what are things that are going to happen in life. You know, bottom drops out. You are going to, maybe you may get sick, you may get injured, you may have a child who gets sick, you may go on vacation, whatever the reasons are, whatever things that are occurring that can keep you from meeting whatever goal. It is above, and just write all those things down or think of those things and then what is one thing that you can do, no matter what, that goes with that goal, that, even if everything else falls out, that you can still do.
Speaker 1:
Okay, so if my strength training and I you know somebody gets sick in the house or I go on vacation, what is something that I can do, no matter what? I could probably do some form of body weight exercise. Right, so mine might be, no matter what. I'm going to get squats in every day, or no matter what I'm going to do 10 pushups, no matter what. What is that one thing that you can do, even if I'm sick? Even if I'm sick, I may not get all the way down on the floor and do pushups, but I can do pushups, countertop pushups. So, no matter what, every day I can do 10 pushups or five pushups, whatever it is that is your one task, that it's going to help you get it done.
Speaker 1:
And this is why we're going to simplify, simplify, simplify. Because what happens is, as we're going along, okay, your goal is you're going to get in shape, whatever. And you're saying, okay, I'm going to start doing some strength training. And you're doing great and you're doing three times a week. You're doing strength training, strength training, and then, bump, something hits where you're not able to do strength training. And then what happens? Then you get sidetracked and you're like, oh, I'm not feeling motivated. There you go, that motivation to get it done. I'm lacking that motivation to go to the gym today Because at some point it's going to become less exciting for you.
Speaker 1:
So what can you do to continue to be working towards that goal, no matter what? So I've said I'm going to do 10 push-ups no matter what, every single day or 80% of the time? Okay, because there is that rule of 80. Just 80% of the time. Does it mean that every single day I'm going to do push-ups? No, but 80% of the time in a week I will do push-ups. So, five out of seven days, that's about 80%. I'm going to do 10 push-ups and that way, if I'm on vacation, I'm still doing my 10 push-ups, so I can check it. I can. Yes, I got it done. I didn't. I didn't get to strength train, but I did get to do my 10 push-ups and it felt good to me today, so I did two more or I did five more, whatever that is going to help you reach those goals.
Speaker 1:
And this is just for a month. So this worksheet just is going to provide you with your focus goal this month. So your focus goal is going to be that main goal. Whatever that is, I'm going to do my strength training and then this is one task that's going to help me get it done. Okay, so hopefully that helps you kind of ease, make it a little bit easier, make it simpler so that you feel more motivated because you're taking daily action. You're doing something every single day to hit that that mark of getting in shape.
Speaker 1:
If you are struggling with this, reach out to me. I'd love to be able to help you. We can schedule a time to talk and I can help you work through these goals so that you can come up with a plan for yourself on making a goal. I do recommend always coming back to your goals each month and reassessing. Maybe it's become a habit in your life and you're ready to move on to something new, something more, or maybe something in your life has changed and you're no longer able to do that and you have to reevaluate. This is life. This is ever-changing, so it does not mean always that our goals are going to be the same. So if you want to do this worksheet, you can work through it every single month, kind of really finding what am I going to focus on this month to help me reach that, that goal that I have, that I set for myself on January 1st, and hopefully that helps you.
Speaker 1:
Again, feel free to reach out with any questions and I'm wishing you the best this new year. Make sure to join us over in our moving through midlife community. I have some exercises over there or, I'm sorry, exercise calendars over there that you can work on, and I'm happy to help answer any questions you have. Feel free to ask any questions within the community and I'll make sure to help you out. Hope you all have a wonderful day and make sure to keep moving. I hope you enjoyed this episode and found something to take away to help you practice healthier habits, move more or handle the midlife in aging with grace. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend or leave us a review to help us reach more moms just like you. Head to movingthroughmidlifecom to join the free community or learn how you can move more and feel better in your daily life.