Reaching your goals OR Refining your goals | Goals and Motivation | Forum

I'm not sure how common this problem is, but here is one of the greatest problems I have faced in my journey to leanness. . .   I reach my goals!  I set fairly high goals, goals that I would have thought impossible before, and then I reach them!

I don't go out and celebrate or anything, but I do let down my guard.  Then, I start to lose ground.  As motivating as goals can be, progress can actually have negative effects!

Any ideas for refining goals? 

Darrin, those are super ideas!

I'm sure there is an element of "I really shouldn't look this way" thinking worming its way into my subconscious.  I am NOT a substance abuser and guess what?  It's not hard at all to refrain from abusing substances!  I'm just "not that kind of person."

I've started thinking of myself as "not the kind of person" who abuses food, who is lax about his workouts, or who is "fat."  On the contrary, I've been visualizing myself as a person who is focused, fit and serious about his health.

Interestingly, I've used the concept of "visualizing" in learning a foreign language – I "see" myself in certain situations and "hear" myself speaking the language, answering questions, making comments, conducting an entire conversation.  Then, when the actual event happens, I am familiar and comfortable with the situation and the language flows more fluently than it otherwise would have.  After all, I have seen myself as the type of person who can speak the language!

Nice to see that the same strategy will pay off in reaching my fitness goals!

Thanks for this interesting and helpful forum.  I'm looking forward to 2010 and all the progress I am already seeing myself make!