Three P’s To Stay On Track
by Kelly McPherson CPT, CFT, CES

Let's face it. Life is busy. Between kids, work, and everything else that seems to come our way, things can be kind of crazy. Sometimes the responsibilities of our lives conquer our lives and quite often our diet and exercise habits are the casualties of the war. It happens to all of us. Sometimes when we get out of our habits, it can be extremely difficult to get back into them. From my experience, it is best to never lose your fitness habits in the first place. Below are my 3 P’s to keeping on track.

Priority. I have found that we all have the same number of hours in the day. We can say that a certain something is a top priority, but at the end of the day, whatever we have actually gotten done is really what we have made our top priority. Now I am not saying what your priorities should be. That is clearly up to you. Maybe you really do have so many crisis going in your life, that your health just doesn't make the cut. All that I am saying is that if you are struggling to get time for your health, maybe you should look at what is taking priority in your life and make sure that your health is in it's proper place on the list.

Planning. Ok, so maybe you have looked at your priorities and found that watching your favorite tv show has come above taking care of you health. Maybe there are a few things that have mistakenly gotten placed above your health? Time to figure out how to put thing in the right order again.

I have learned that just saying that you are going to get in 45 minutes on the treadmill every day doesn't usually work. That event needs to be planned. Ask and answer a few questions like these. When will I walk on the treadmill? Do I need to set the alarm earlier? Do I need to take some workout clothes to work? Do I need to find a walking partner? Do I need to trade babysitting with a neighbor? Do I need to turn off the tv? Who do I need to involve in my plan? When will I eat veggies today? What kind are they? Do I have them in the fridge or do I need to pick some up? Do I need to make a plan for eating them on the run? I think you get the idea. Ask yourself the questions that reflect some of the reasons you have failed in the past and make a plan to overcome that failing in the future.

After you have figured out how to get things done a few times, it gets easier and I find it helpful to plan at least a week at a time of workouts and menus. This allows me to look at this weeks schedule and change things around as necessary. Maybe my daughter has a doctor’s appointment right when I would usually be riding my bike. I will need to take a hard look at the schedule and see where else I can put that particular workout. Maybe my son has karate practice right when I should be home making a healthy meal. I will need to plan something quick or in the crockpot that night so that I am not so tempted to do a drive by meal or just throw cereal on the table.

Have a back up plan. Sometimes the day just doesn’t go as planned. Kids get sick. Projects at work become a priority because your boss says that they will. Cars break down. You get the idea. When these unexpected things come our way, it is important to not give up on our plans just because something you have no control over has come and blasted our plans into outer space. When this happens, DO WHAT YOU CAN. At the hospital, take the stairs instead of the elevator. Do a workout at home instead of the gym. Choose a healthy sandwich shop instead of french fries. Make the workout shorter, but up the intensity. Be creative.

Practice. Last time I checked, nobody has ever sat down to the piano and played it perfectly the first time. Some have played better than others, but perfect, the first time, with no prior practice is highly unlikely. So, cut yourself some slack! Allow yourself some room to make mistakes. Miss a workout. Eat a brownie. If those were not planned occurrences, figure out why they happened and make some plans to change so that you are less likely to do it again. Be creative. Sometimes the solution to our problem is just something that we haven’t thought of before. Ask people who are making it work. Scan health and fitness magazines and websites for tips and suggestions. There are tons of ideas out there. The grocery checkout line, usually has a few. The idea here is to just be proactive. If what you are doing isn’t working, go find something that does.

Take home message: Get rid of your excuses. If it is really important to you, you will find a way to make it work.