Scared of making a change? Start small!

I will admit that I can feel overwhelmed when I want to make a change in my life or try something new; human nature is to resist change and protect ourselves.  What is really happening is I am scared of the unknown and doubt myself.  Fear is the biggest reason we do not make a change in our lives.  The good news is we can face the fear and kick it to the kerb!  We just need to take our time, be patient and not allow ourselves to be overwhelmed (easier said than done, I know!)

In my own life and my experience of personal training many clients, I have some tips on how to make a change and stick to it.  My main message is this:

Small steps lead to big changes! 

How good does that sound?  It is true as well.

A good example is this blog.

You see, I am a perfectionist and can also be pretty mean to myself.  If you know me, you will know that I LOVE talking and am very good at it, but when it comes to writing anything down, I freeze and that negative voice in my head tells me that I can’t do it!

I have wanted to start blogging for ages but have been stuck in the web of fear about doing it.  It is always the item left un-ticked on my weekly to do list.  It’s always in the back of my mind that I haven’t done it which makes me feel worse!

So, I decided to take the same advice that I give to my clients when they feel overwhelmed or doubtful about their ability to achieve their health goal.  Here is what I did:

• I wrote a list of topics I could blog about
• I picked one from the list
• I planned to tackle one paragraph a day until it was finished (if I had set myself the target of writing the whole blog in one go I would have felt overwhelmed which = procrastination and beating myself up for not doing it!  NOT an option!)
• I read and proof checked it
• I sent it to my sister and a trusted friend for feedback
• I made a few tweaks
• I published it

The process from start to finish took 2 weeks.  How do I feel now it is done?  I feel relieved, happy that I have published a blog and slightly nervous about how it will be received.  The important thing is that I did it!  It may not be perfect, it may have bored you to tears but the point is, I actually did it and guess what?  Although it wasn’t easy, it was NOWHERE near as difficult as I had anticipated and I know that writing the next blog will be easier.

The same applies to your goals, whatever they might be.  It could be that you want to drop a dress size or be able to jog a mile without stopping.  Perhaps you want to start exercising as you want to get fit but the thought of doing it fills you with fear and dread as you don’t know where to start or what to do.  Don’t panic!  Break it down, do one thing each day towards the goal and you will start to notice that little by little, you are getting closer to what you want to achieve. 

What do you want to change/introduce into your life but you are feeling overwhelmed or scared about? 

Remember, it’s better to try and see how it goes, rather than not do anything and regret it!

I should also point out that if you try and it doesn’t go as planned, DO NOT GIVE UP!  There is always tomorrow and trust me, if you persist, you will feel amazing.

If you have got this far, thank you for reading!

Until next time…….. (because now I know I can write one blog, I know I can write another!)

Love Sian x

Sian is a mobile personal trainer and runs Enrich Fitness with her sister Carrie.  They are based in Twickenham, Middlesex and cover a wide area of South West London and Surrey.  www.enrichfitness.co.uk