Setting Goals with Soul

I've been reading this great book about goal setting and creating positive habits in your life. I've been working hard to find a way to balance the two extremes that I see weekly when I work with my clients. Women come in wanting weight loss, to feel great and to look good. They want some sort of plan, calorie range or workout guide to stick to. My goal is to get women to find a lifestyle they can follow forever. To get that rush of excitement without having to go on a eating plan or exercise regimen. To feel absolutely amazing about themselves; not just because of the way they look but because of the way they feel. I want women to start looking on the inside. Start taking care of themselves internally. I want us to get in-tune with what our bodies need and begin to nourish the heck out of them.

Now, don't get me wrong. Being at a healthy weight is important. Being active is important, eating healthy foods is so important. But, is reaching your goal weight of 130 lbs going to fix everything? No. Especially when you have to starve yourself to get there. What happens when you've followed your meal plan to a T for 30 days? Do you ban sweets forever? Do you bring a food scale with you everywhere you go for the rest of your life? Do you avoid all restaurants because it's not part of your plan? I sure hope not.

I want every single one of you to stop feeling like a prisoner in your own body. I want you to be healthy without counting calories. I want you to feel vibrant and refreshed even after a long holiday weekend. I want you to enjoy your workouts and pick and choose what you get to do on a daily basis, because after all, it's your body. The whole reason we want plans and regimes and meal guides is because we want to feel good. If we feel hungry, deprived and angry while we're trying to get there, we've lost the whole point of health.

So, I've been racking my brain trying to figure out how do I get women interested on their internal well being? Yes, when you make sure your needs are being met and your internally taken care of, your body will get you to a happy weight, you'll be more energetic, you'll feel better about yourself and you will turn this into a lifestyle. But the process might not be as "glamorous" as a 1200 calorie eating plan and daily workout sessions. It may take longer, it won't be black and white, you'll have to actually get in- tune with your feelings and why you're feeling certain ways. You don't get to cover anything up with structures and plans. It's raw, it's real and for once, you finally get to see your true self. There's days you feel great, there's days you just want to rest. But the amazing thing is, it's okay. There's no strict plan. No number you have to stay under. No specific body part you have to focus on. You just need to take care of your needs.

So, back to this great book i'm reading. The whole idea around it is setting goals based on what you want to feel. So instead of saying your goals is to lose 50 lbs, you figure out how you want to feel. For example, I want to feel healthy, vibrant and energized. Maybe losing weight would help that, but, most likely things that will help that would be nourishing my body with whole foods most of the time, hydrating, allowing myself breaks from work, getting enough hours of sleep, having healthy relationships in my life and being kind to myself.
Maybe you want to feel powerful, loved and confident. What can you do on a daily basis to get yourself there? Maybe it's doing something way out of your comfort zone. Maybe it's taking yourself out on a date. Maybe it's asking for a raise from your boss.
So, the next time you're ready to make some changes and set some goals, start with figuring out how you want to feel. Decide what small changes you can do every day to get yourself feeling that way.

Let me know what you think!

See ya in the studio,
​Hanna