I don’t know about you, but I love watching sports. As I was watching The World Series this past week, I became inspired to share some observations in the hopes of helping each of you reach your personal weight-loss goals.
It became apparent to me as I watched the games that each of the athletes believe in themselves and that they all share a desire to succeed — to reach their goal of winning. In fact, most athletes who are interviewed are usually thrilled just to be a participant in these games. The point is that it’s taken years and years of practice and just being on the winning team to represent their league, in and of itself, quite an accomplishment. Winning a World Series ring is icing on the cake!
Many of us who are struggling to lose weight give up after steering off course or after not seeing much progress in a short period of time. What would happen if the pitcher believed he was too old to compete?
You see, these athletes had a dream and held onto that dream despite illness, injury or previous failed attempts to win. Why? They believed in themselves and they listened to their inner voices rather than to negative comments from others. They knew their potential; they loved their sport and wanted to accomplish their goal.
YOU can also reach your goals. Our weight-loss quests can be viewed with the same perspective with which we view these athletes. They learn things and make their improvements in small steps. They practice day in and day out to make improvements with their techniques. They maintain their focus on the goal. They don’t give up.
Everyone working to improve their health, to lose weight and to reach a goal also needs to maintain focus on that goal and make choices every day that will lead them one step closer to that goal. If you believe in yourself and you make the effort, it is possible for you to reach your goal.
In listening and watching athletes interviewed it occurred to me that they don’t focus on what others may be thinking of them. Instead, they kept focus on their goal, they overcome that one error and give their best in the remaining games. They maintain their belief in themselves and don’t let that error prevent them from reaching their goal.
I saw the parallel between athletes going for the win and overweight men and women working toward their weight-loss goals and achieving optimal health. These teams know what they are capable of doing and have the “routine of a lifetime” and one will came back to win. You are capable of getting healthier and learning healthy habits, and Atkins has the tools, resources and support to help you stay the course and reach your goals.
Besides being inspired by watching these hard bodies in motion and feeling their sense of determination and pride, how can we relate to the lessons shared by these athletes? By staying on track with the following summary of points.
Set your sight on the goal and do not give up on yourself or that goal. Stay focused, review the goal often, believe in yourself and do something each day to move you one step closer to reaching that goal.
Reward yourself along the way. You might not win a medal, but you can reward yourself for your accomplishments. Break your larger goal down into smaller ones and have a reward plan in place to celebrate each of your successes.
Continue to learn and make improvements along the way. This is where practice comes in. Utilize all the tools, resources and information to make the most of your plan, to know everything about it and to make the best choices.
Surround yourself with positive and supportive people. We offer an array of support opportunities and experts to assist you every step of the way. Know that everyone is cheering you on to reaching your own “gold!”
Don’t get hung up on slips, falls or mistakes. Instead, learn from them and get right back on track with your plan. Have a plan in place and always stay focused on your goal. You CAN do this!
The above tip ties in with this: stay determined. Look at small changes as big progress. If you’re stuck at a plateau, look at the whole picture and stay on course. Plain and simply, never give up.
Practice, practice, practice. The old adage is true — if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
One thing, in closing, that I wanted to share is about teamwork. This relates to how we can support one another and cheer each other on in reaching our goals. As many of you know, by participating in the forums, there’s a lot to be said for teamwork. And, there’s so much to be gained from it!
You can do it… now is the time to make your dream a reality.
