This morning, I stepped on the scale. I set a record for 2010! It was the highest number yet! Huzzah!
…or, no. Wait.
Something needs to be done about this. I prefer to use golf scoring when my weight is involved (the lowest number wins) but at this rate, my ego is starting to wish that higher numbers are a good thing. I need to intervene before it’s too late.
Baseline!
My first thought was to baseline my current weight and then compare future measurements against today’s weight. The problem is that if I lose 10 pounds, I’ll think that’s great when in reality I’d like to lose double that number. The risk with looking backwards is that my progress will be good but maybe not good enough.
Goals!
I flipped the equation and thought about setting a goal (let’s say: lose 20 pounds) and then compare my progress against that. The problem? If I don’t make enough progress, then I feel like I’ve fallen behind. Thus, I’d always need to be readjusting my goals as life throws curveballs at me that throw off my progress towards the goal (travel, celebration with friends, etc).
Now.
Breaking habits is the key to any personal change. Looking back to a baseline helps me understand what habits create the problem I want to solve. Looking ahead to a goal helps me understand what habits I must create to resolve the problem.
The thing I realized yet again is that the answer to my problem is always and eternally found right here, right now. My habit is enacted now, not in the future and not in the past. The only thing that matters is what I do now and that it fits in between that past habit I am breaking and that future habit I am establishing.
Unfortunately, right now, things kind of suck.
Related posts:
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I lost 10 pounds over a 9 month period, just by counting calories (I aimed for 1200/day). What worked for me is that I had a goal weight, but no time limit on reaching it. It was easier to maintain my discipline on one front than on multiple ones (i.e. lose x pounds by x date and exercise x times per week).
What works is different for everybody, though. Good luck.
Think of it this way.. You are packing on muscle now!
This is scary. I could have written this post, word for word, about me. Get out of my head. Seriously.