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
