As I’m writing this, it’s early morning on December 27th & I’ve decided to create 4 great days, starting now.
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The holidays can be tough. Our schedules are off, there are lots of parties and get-togethers, treats, sweets, drinks, leftovers…you name it.
A holiday can turn into weeks or months of over-indulging and not feeling so great.
The good news is – we can create a change right now. We are all just a few great choices away from feeling so much better. That’s why I’m leading the charge with 4 great days.
Of course, you don’t have to do 4 days. You can do 4 great hours. You can do 1 great day. You can do a great week or a great month.
As for me, I’m drawing a line in the sand right now. I have zero guilt about holiday cookies. They were delicious. I’m not trying to make up for them, I’m just trying to make myself feel great today.
I have zero guilt about not getting in the workout I planned to do yesterday. It didn’t happen. I don’t have to make up for it. But I’m ready to make myself feel amazing.
There is a caveat: It’s not enough for me to define what I’ll do and not do, what choices I’ll make and not make. It’s not enough to define a great day and then hope I execute it. It takes more attention & effort than that.
I will write this plan out here and then I’ll keep coming back to it, several times a day, to make sure I’m focused on making the next hour or handful of hours amazing. I’ll focus on just a few hours at a time.
So, for today and the following 3 days, here’s what amazing looks like to me:
- Up at 5am
- Drink a full glass of water before having any coffee
- Journal for 5 minutes before work
- Work for 90 minutes without TV on
- Workout!
- Black coffee only until lunch & 2 liters of water daily
- Lunch will be the same for all 4 days for simplicity: cabbage salad bowl
- No snacking
- Dinner will be noodle-free chicken soup OR meat & veggies depending on how hungry I am
- Meditate for 10 minutes no matter what
This structure helps me establish simple decision making criteria.
Will I crave sugar? No doubt! I’ve had a fair amount of it over the past few days. But, for the next few days I’m simply not having it.
I’m not negotiating with myself. I’m not making a case for why it’s an okay choice or arguing for doing better on Monday or when the leftovers are gone. I’m creating 4 amazing days now.
When I find myself wanting something sweet or wanting to snack on nuts or bars, I’ll remind myself why I’m doing this. In just a day, I can feel more energetic. I can feel motivated. I can feel leaner. My ring can fit more comfortably. My workouts can feel better. And in 4 days, going into New Years Eve, I can feel pretty dang fantastic after 4 great days.
The simplicity of this structure make it easier and faster for me to make decisions without stories, drama, excuses, delays or justifications.
Your structure might (and probably should) look different. Your timeframe might look different. You get to define what a great day or a great morning, evening or afternoon looks like for you.
But the point is this: we all have the ability to create an amazing day today. We have the ability to feel infinitely better tomorrow, physically & emotionally, by capitalizing on the choices that are opportunities today.