On January 1, journals and diaries across the globe are filled with lists, goals and resolutions that will (hopefully!) make the New Year a successful and better one.   And, at the top of many lists are the important but elusive goals of ‘lose weight” and “get healthy.

I have a lot of first hand knowledge and personal experience with these resolutions.  For most of my adult life I have struggled with my weight and along with the weight came other things that burdened my life...lack of self-esteem and confidence, health issues and low energy, and the blocks that being overweight seemed to place around every corner both personally and socially.

As the author of this article, I think it’s important for you to know that I was one of those people who made those resolutions every year.   In fact, I consistently included these two resolutions on my list year after year.  My resolve would always wane within a week or two.  I finally recognized this as a negative pattern and decided that I needed to ask myself WHY I was making the resolution in the first place.

With some time spent soul searching, I was able to find the answers inside myself that solidly ignited my determination and commitment to keep my resolutions.  I discovered that I was sick and tired of being overweight, making unhealthy choices and feeling bad about myself every single day of my life!  I also realized that I was the only one who could ultimately motivate me to reach these elusive goals.

This was the major breakthrough that helped me to begin to keep my commitment to losing weight and thus change my life forever!

Starting with that first step, I have now reached my comfortable goal weight and I am healthier and happier about myself today than ever before in my life!  I have gone from a size 16 to a size 8 in a matter of months.  I continue my commitment by making time every day to support and maintain my healthy and energetic lifestyle.

And, here’s the proof!

Before	After!

If I can do it, so can you and I am here to help you succeed!  In fact my life’s mission and work is to make a profound and lifelong difference in people’s lives and give every person the opportunity to experience vibrant health.

Here are 7 success strategies that worked for me and I know they can help you keep your resolutions once and for all!

1. Ground Yourself Emotionally – The most important step you can take is to become  very attached to how great you can feel and look.  Write down all of the fabulous ways your life will change and what it will be like when you do achieve your goal.

Then, spend time visualizing in great detail what your life will be like.  I can’t tell you how many times the strength of my “feelings” about being vibrant and healthy, helped me to  make better choices about what I did and didn’t do and kept me focused on the fact that the decisions I made today directly related to my goal and my future.  Visualization helped me to start living that life in the moment.

2. Small Steps - Focus on realistic goals with measurable results.  Break things into the smallest steps you can manage.  Be prepared to try several different approaches to achieve your goal.  Prepare a plan of action that gives you plenty of options.

3. Enlist others to Cheer You On! -  Share your intentions with as many people as possible that care about you and want to see you succeed.  Ask them to be your support team and be sure to tell them all the reasons you want to be successful.  Call on them when you are struggling and they can remind you of your “why” when you need it most and cheer you on to success!

4.  Get Moving! - Get started immediately!  Action precedes motivation, not the other way around.  Instead of waiting for inspiration, get moving.  If you are having trouble getting out for that walk, start moving and you will soon find the motivation was there, just waiting for you to shake it loose!

5.  Encourage Yourself - If you fall off a bit or even relapse, don’t be too hard on yourself.  Remind yourself that it was just a minor setback and don’t let it undermine your self-confidence.  Just because you didn’t get up early today to take a walk doesn’t mean you can’t find 30 minutes in the middle of the day to get some exercise.  Relapses can be challenging, but the best solution is to start again.

6.  Help Yourself with positive reinforcements – Create your own triggers to help you to stay on track.   Change your home page on your computer to a health-focused website so it’s the first thing you see when you start your day.  Pack a healthy lunch so you don’t have to make the often difficult decision of where and how to get a healthy meal.  Sleep in your exercise clothes if it makes it easier to head out the door first thing for a walk. 

And last but not least…

7.  DON’T TAKE YOURSELF TOO SERIOUSLY… but be serious about living your Life.  If you are unhappy about your weight, you can resolve it.  You can take control of your eating habits and feel better about yourself and your body. Treat yourself like you would someone else in this situation–with support and encouragement.  Be your own best friend and cheerleader.  Don’t give up on yourself so easily.   It’s never over till you quit trying!

If you are ready to live your most healthy life, then there is never a better time to start than now.  Take the time to follow these 7 strategies, refocus your energy and don’t quit until you get there!

Happy New Year and Cheers to your good health!