How to Build a Strategy For Staying Motivated About Wellness

Day in and day out, I work with American women who want to change their self-care habits. I’m not talking about habits designed to keep them looking younger. I’m talking about the self-care habits designed to keep them alive.

As a prediabetes educator and holistic health coach, I frequently help women diagnosed with early stage diabetes, or prediabetes. It’s now said that 86 million Americans are in danger of developing Type 2 Diabetes as they ignore their prediabetes. The women I coach have been told that in order to avoid Type 2 Diabetes, they must make lifestyle changes they don’t particularly want to make. Changes like improving their food, dropping weight, getting more—exercise, sleep, nutrition, stress-relief. That’s where I come in…they want me to make them do the work to change.

As you might imagine, I’m quite popular.

I can count on one hand the times I’ve coached women who were highly enthusiastic about the general topic of Change. Most people are change-averse. And all people are averse to dying from the complications of diabetes. So, after we work together for a few weeks, my clients start to see the benefits of improving their wellness routine. I’m happy for them! Or, at least I’m happy for them until they decide to quit and give up.

That’s when I pull out my ultimate tool—I remind them to stay motivated by staying alive.

There are real concerns about prediabetes in America. 90% of people with this disease don’t even know they have it, and their bodies are silently being damaged every day. The way that the average American eats is damaging, especially to bodies that are insulin resistant. And unstable blood sugar causes cellular inflammation, damage to small blood vessels, and impaired circulation.
I believe this kind of physical damage bothers you. By reading an article about wellness and motivation, you’ve raised your hand as a person who cares. And if your doctor has warned you about high blood sugar or prediabetes, today may be the best day to create a habit-change strategy.
Let’s go!

1. Keep your wellness goals in mind. Write down your measurable milestones. Easier said than done, or so you may think. Here’s a tool that does help hundreds of folks tackle this every month. You don’t have to figure this out alone! [Tool Link: https://bit.ly/2nTTLjO]

2. Set smaller goals that build to the main goal. Feeling overwhelmed is no fun. Your doctor may say something unhelpful like “drop” 10% of your body weight and come back in 6 months. How about a step-by-step plan, doc? How about a magic potion? Your doctor may not be a nutrition expert or trained to teach habit change. I tell my coaching clients that whatever their wellness goal, incremental short-term goals truly help. The measurable milestones you wrote down in step one…they’re mini-goals you can conquer on the road to wellness.

3. Reward yourself with something you enjoy. What is it they say about the joy of anticipation? They say that earning rewards is helpful, especially when you make yourself wait for the accomplishment to happen before the reward. Not everyone is motivated by material things, or so I’m told. I personally can get behind new shoes or weekends at the lake. What about you? What sounds like a reward worth working toward?

4. Keep track of your progress. Focus on the good in your life. Measuring results may feel like a drag to you. I don’t own a bathroom scale so I cannot weigh myself, but that’s just me being a rebel. So I keep track of my wellness progress in other ways. I schedule into my calendar trips to the farmer’s market to buy quality produce. I take pictures of the amazing food I create with said produce. I focus on how good I feel when I eat my cooking. I journal about my best recipe of the week. I’ve found this personal way to keep track and stay positive. I believe you can do your own version of tracking your efforts and stay motivated.

5. Team up with an encouraging friend. This advice seems clear enough. Yet, I often see my coaching clients hanging out with Debbie Downers who harp on everything and everyone. Sometimes, having encouraging friends means making new friends. It has been proven that a positive social life helps people live longer and mostly happier.

6. Challenge yourself to find a mentor or a coach. Check in with them often. You can reach me at info@GeorgianneHolland.com. It’s true!

7. Stay focused by using mindfulness and journalling. This advice is last on my list because usually, people new to habit change are looking for help outside of their own mind. They’re dreaming of that magic pill or that flipped switch that makes the original problem disappear in a puff of smoke. In reality--or in conscious adult living--an important part of staying motivated on wellness success is to sit down and get quiet. Mindfulness means taking time to tend to the inner game of habit change. Writing in a journal means capturing the thoughts you have…big and small thoughts, and feelings, too. If this kind of thing is new to you, I encourage you to take a look at this special resource about understanding your inner voice. Which is different than tamping down your Inside voice. Or, at least I think so. [Resource Link: https://bit.ly/2XE1S8d]

Your strategy for staying motivated about wellness is important. It’s valuable to give your first strategy for staying motivated a try, see what works, make adjustments, and then try again. What isn’t valuable? Giving up on yourself time and again isn’t getting you where you need to be. I’m here to help.