Defining Progress
- Advancement
- Development
- Closer to reaching the goal
- Underway
- Growth
Progress can come in very small increments like logging your food for 3 days straight or it can come in a bigger block like losing 40 pounds in six months. Making progress is an adventure and it shouldn’t be taken for granted or dismissed no matter how small.
On the flip side…stoppage, a decrease, or hitting the dreaded plateau can completely destroy our growth, which generally leaves people discouraged, depletes motivation, and makes it hard to stick it out.
It Takes Time
Weight loss, exchanging poor habits for better ones, and having a new outlook does not come in a matter of minutes, hours, days, or weeks. It’s compiling day by day, month after month and year after year, where these changes become cemented into our daily routines.
Progress isn’t just handed out, it’s earned the old fashion way. The issue isn’t setting lofty goals or celebrating the big milestones; the issue is starting with thinking small.
Start with picking the low hanging fruit: walking everyday, lifting weights twice a week or logging your calories for a month straight. Progress shouldn’t always be measured in the end result; it really starts with the small incremental increases towards change.
Think Small
The easiest way to make progress, as I said, is to start thinking small. You can have the goals of losing 30 or more pounds, decreasing your blood pressure and cholesterol, or even getting ready for an event like a wedding or running your first 5K. All of these are great goals to have, but that’s you crossing the finish line.
To get to the finish line we need you to think of checking the box “yes” for just today that you walked, did your squats, and didn’t reach for something unhealthy when the you know what hit the fan at work. For just today, that is a WIN and just like any sports team you need to collect as many wins as you can to be successful. It can be a long season and some days will without a doubt be better than others. It comes down to simple math, pile up wins and the end results will be you crossing the finish line reaching your goals.
K.I.S.S.
The best tip I have for you to make progress is this - don’t make it complicated. Nothing will stop your progress faster than complication. People like to make things difficult when super easy works just fine. Complicated diets, exercise programs, and the latest fitness fads are more about the sale and less about the bottom line. Do not go down this road. Complicated can leave you vulnerable to so many problems, which usually ends up with you not finishing the job that you started.
Simplicity is your ally. Simplicity is easy to follow, simplicity is easier to execute, and simplicity will get you there faster!!
What Does Simplicity Look Like?
- It’s moving every day
- Logging your calories
- Not overeating
- Sticking to a simple exercise routine
- Eating real food
- Incrementally making your workouts harder
- Showing up everyday to do the work
Progress is the point, it can come quickly or it can take months. Don’t shortchange yourself because you have made small gains. Every little bit counts!
Image Credit: Paul Dufour via Unsplash
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