[00:00:00] Happy New Year! We are three days into the new year and I think there's really something special about a new year, about starting something new. December is the busiest month of the year. It is just chaos and I feel like as each day goes on in December it gets busier and busier and busier and then we have New Year's Eve and then it feels like the first is like calm and quiet and people kind of Re evaluate what's going on and slow things down.
Sometimes people put away their Christmas decorations or their holiday decorations depending on where they live or what they celebrate. And it's an easy time for us to think about if we want to make adjustments for the new year. It's no different than starting a new school year or a new class or anything that we do new.
We like to imagine and think about how we want it to go. Now, for a lot of people, they don't do New Year's resolutions, and I think that's great. I think you do you. You do what's right for you.
But whether you do resolutions or not, [00:01:00] I think during different times of our lives, we all make goals. We all plan to work on something, improve something, do something new, and that just tends to happen a lot in the New Year. But what I've noticed is there are two really big mistakes when people are making resolutions Truly hindering their ability to have success with their resolutions, or let's just say goals, whether you're doing resolutions or not, just something you're working on any time of the year.
Two big mistakes that people are making. And the crazy part is, both of them are actually fully in our control.
it's been a full year since I started drinking AG1. It was something that I started last January, and I'm so thankful that I did. Number one, it replaced my multivitamin, and in one scoop, I get a prebiotic, a probiotic, a digestive enzyme for my gut support, magnesium, And B vitamins for energy and support. I [00:02:00] truly love AG1. It's a very simple way for me to make sure that I am focusing on my needs as in my vitamins and minerals. And the best part is they have been tested for 950 contaminants and SFN certified for sports.
As I mentioned, I started drinking them in January. My husband has started drinking them. I want to say in like March and even my coaches the other day were asking me about it and I was like, I love it. I love it. Love it. Love it. So I'm pretty sure that most of my employees who helped me coach are now also drinking it because we are really big fans.
I just feel like so many things now are so complicated. Try this, try this, try this, try this. I love that it's one scoop and I get it all. You know, on this podcast, I am all about making things simple. I'm all about giving you simple ideas to move your health and fitness forward in a realistic, relatable way.
So if you're looking for one simple way to take ownership of your health, AG1 is a great way to make your health routine more effective. Try AG1 and get a free one year supply of [00:03:00] vitamin D and free Five free AG1 travel packs with your first purchase. Go to drinkag1. com slash simple. Again, that's drinkag1.
com slash simple. I will add that in the show notes as well. You're going to love it.
before we get started on today's topic, I do want to give you a quick update on the app. If you don't follow me on social media, my handle is deliciously fit and healthy. We are supposed to be releasing this month. We don't have a firm date yet, but I will let you know as Soon as I know, and you can join the app waitlist, I will add that link in the show notes. We're going to be giving a founding members discount price.
It's going to be the cheapest price we offer from that waitlist. So join that waitlist. The app is going to be amazing. We have multiple fitness programs in it. It's all core friendly. We have entire education sections where we have 14 other experts, including pelvic floor therapists, [00:04:00] psychologists.
Doctors, mobility specialists, so many experts, like it's not even funny. Their videos are so great to help teach you. We talk about women's health, about core, about hormones, about body functionality. We talk with physical therapists, so many different videos to teach you in there besides just the workouts.
And then of course we will have the nutrition section as well. I am still keeping my nutrition coaching because that's hands on. So that is still an option if you're looking for nutrition coaching. I do still have that. But the app in itself, which is Workouts, is coming. And I want you to keep your eyes peeled for that because it's going to be amazing.
All right, let's get into it. I'm going to keep this episode very short, very simple, and very clear so that you don't make these mistakes when you're making your goals or adjusting things in your life. [00:05:00] [00:06:00] I'm sure this is going to seem kind of obvious and kind of like an oxymoron when I tell you what they are. So number one.
A major mistake people make is they make a goal, but then they have a lack of structure to actually reach that goal. And the second part to this is maybe they make a goal and they make a structure, a plan to reach that goal, but there is a lack of flexibility. I know you're probably thinking. That seems kind of weird.
Flexibility and structure, that doesn't really go together. It is kind of like an oxymoron, kind of. But it actually does totally go together because there are so many different aspects of our life that require structure yet [00:07:00] flexibility. Think about an athlete who plays on a team.
They have plays, and when they have plays, they have a plan, you know, structure, but yet they have to adapt to another team's style or another team's plays. If a team showed up with no structure, no plan, you know, no plays to run, or no positions or such, they wouldn't win the game. But if they have no flexibility in the game to adapt their plays compared to the other team, They also won't win the game.
Another really great example of this is parenting. Some parents don't have any structure. And while some people might think that's great, a lot of studies have shown that kids do well under structure. They do well with a parenting style. And there's lots of different parenting styles. So structure or a plan as a parenting does help.
Now, on the flip side, before I was a parent and when my kids were even littler, and I don't even have teenagers yet, so I know that's a whole nother ballgame. I'm speaking as a [00:08:00] younger mom, mid mom life, but I remember before I had kids thinking, Oh, I'm going to be like, this is a parent and this is my plan and I'm going to act like this and I'm going to handle this situation this way.
And I had a plan. I thought I knew how I was going to do it. And while some of those things I have decently stuck to, I do still feel that way. Then, I got in the situation, And different situations have come up, and I have had to be more flexible.
I've had a style of parenting, a method, a plan, a structure, you could call it, but I've had to adapt and be flexible. Not only do different situations come up, but kids are different. My twins are polar opposites in the things they like, in the way they behave, in the things they respond to, and they're twins.
And I still have to parent them very different. So I have guidelines as a parent. I do want a plan. I do want a structure for my kids. Guidelines. But I have to be flexible and adapt. In [00:09:00] parenting, or in a game if you're an athlete, if your plan doesn't work out, if your play doesn't work out, you don't say, shoot, man, that didn't work.
I failed. I'm going to quit. No, you think of how to adapt. You think of how to mold and flow into a new way. Yet for some reason in fitness, we often make a plan. Well, technically we make a goal first, then we. Either don't make a plan with it, that's a lack of structure, or we make a plan and then we're so rigid in that plan that there's no room for grace or flexibility or even the ability to adapt to things you didn't expect, and then people just quit feeling like they've failed.
So, it really is a matter of not only lack of structure, but lack of flexibility. You need a plan, you can't just have a goal, you've got to have a roadmap to get to your goal, but you need to not have that roadmap be so [00:10:00] straight, so stick straight, that you don't allow any curving, any fluidity, any ability to adapt and be flexible.
So knowing that a lack of structure and a lack of flexibility are definitely not your goal's friends, So I'm going to tell you that you need a solid, flexible plan. By solid, I mean you need the structure. By flexible, I mean you need the ability to adapt. And that is how we are going to reach our goals, is by making that plan and having it be flexible.
So let's talk about how we do that and I'm going to give a couple of quick examples to get your brain churning no matter what your plans are, no matter what your goals are, whether it's fitness related, nutrition related, relationship related, financial related, whatever it is, I hope I just get your wheels churning about how you can think this through and make a journey for you towards your goals more enjoyable and that it's just not [00:11:00] so rigid.
So number one, obviously you're going to need to pick a goal. I'm going to highly suggest that you go back to episode 157, how to set and reach your goals without negativity. It's a really, really good episode and also episode 158, unleash your potential with this new mindset for goal setting. Both of those combined with this episode are going to be your best friend.
They're going to literally be like the three amigos. You're going to love them. So when you're picking your goal, think about that. Second, when you're thinking about what you want to work on. And again, I know New Year's resolutions aren't for everyone. That's totally okay. But in general, at any time in your life, if you want to work on something, Your goals can be big, they can be lofty.
I'm not telling you to not dream. I think dreaming is amazing. I think dreaming is inspiring. So I don't mind when goals are lofty and big, but the plan. To get there needs to be realistic with tiny steps, [00:12:00] tiny little adjustments along the way. So let's talk about that plan now. Oftentimes people have that goal and then they have no structure, they have no plan to get there, and then it just seems so unrealistic.
So instead we have that goal and then we have these tiny little chapters. You know, if you want to finish the book, maybe there's 30 chapters in it. So each little step along the way counts in your plan and that's going to get you where you want to go. You can't just climb the mountain in one false swoop.
It's going to take tiny little steps. So the plan is going to be tiny to start. Sometimes when people start their plan, They have that lack of structure, not because they're not thinking about it, but because they've made it too big. So the plan needs to be realistic and maintainable.
So let me give a couple of quick examples.
If your goal is to work out more, you might want to pick a window range. That's going to give you some grace and some flexibility. So maybe you might want to say like 2 to 4 days or 3 to 5 days, whatever is a fit for you [00:13:00] about the window range. you may also want to give her window range for the amount of time because some days you're gonna be super busy So you don't just want to say I'm gonna work out X amount of days for 60 minutes Because what if one day you're like, I don't have 60 minutes.
Does that mean you failed? No, it just means your plans a little bit rigid So instead say my goal is to work out X amount of days or you know this window range two to five days from anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes, whatever is the window range that you're looking for. So window ranges do give you that flexibility.
The second thing is, as you're building this plan, you want to take steps that are only one notch up, maybe two from where you are. So if you are someone who only works out two days a week, you don't all of a sudden want to skip and say, I'm going to work out six days a week. That is too big of a leap.
That is not. going to be maintainable and it's going to be so drastic and more extreme, not because it's bad to work out six days a week. That's great. But [00:14:00] because it's too big of a jump. So if you only work out two days a week, your first step in your plan when you're making your goals is having that window range, obviously, but also making it realistic.
Stick. And on the smaller end, if you're only working out those two days, then maybe you're gonna say, my goal is to work out three to four days a week and give yourself that range only a little above where you are. It's the same thing. If your goal is to save money, you wanna give a window range of what you're trying to save, and then you also wanna write down where you're going to give in your spending.
Small amounts, not like. Fully cutting this out. I mean, I guess there's some things you can fully cut out, but you might want to just instead reduce amounts in different areas to try to get to that window. So it's not so extreme.
Let's say your goal is you want to meal prep. Maybe you want to eat healthier. So part of that goal is that you don't want to eat out as much. You don't want to say I'm never going to eat out. I'm eating everything at home because that might not be realistic. That's not going to be a realistic plan. So [00:15:00] instead, shoot for a smaller number of times you are going to eat out and plan a time that you can actually meal prep because if you're busy and that's part of why you're eating out and part of why you're not eating healthy, making these gourmet meals every night is not going to be effective.
So you might want to meal prep and bulk prep some foods all together, which is going to make those busy days a little bit easier. So those are the tiny steps. Now, with that plan, along the way, you can make adjustments to keep moving in the direction of your goal. As I said, your goals, your dreams, those can be lofty.
Those can be big, but you want those plan, the structure, the steps along the way to be little. So once you get there, once you've adjusted, you adjust it again and add a little more and add a little more. That's how you're going to build the plan. If you have big dreams and big goals and no plan. You're not going to get there.
That's the lack of structure. Just no ifs, ands, or buts. If you have no plan, you're not going to be [00:16:00] able to move in that direction because it takes effort to reach those goals. Even if they're small, it's going to take a little bit of shift of our behaviors. And there are so many studies showing that our behaviors are very set in stone.
And if we don't redirect the river course, if we don't try new route and genuinely. Set into changing that route, We are ten times more less likely to change unless we have that plan. So, redirecting that river, you need that structure.
Now, this is the piece that everyone understands. Everyone normally knows, I need a goal and then I need a plan to get there. But the piece we miss is the flexibility. That's the piece that I don't feel like we talk about a ton, which is why I want you to go back and listen to those other episodes as well.
Your goals can be written, you know, I shouldn't say in stone, but they can be firm. But your plan needs to be flexible. In the 10 years that I have done online nutrition [00:17:00] coaching, and I know I've been in the fitness industry for 19, but I've done nutrition coaching online for clients online for 10 years. In that period of time, the biggest mistake people make is the lack of flexibility. Normally they get they need the goal, they get they need the plan, they don't get they need the flexibility.
They want to do it perfectly. This feeds into the all or nothing mindset. But the problem is things are going to come up, just like it comes up with clients on their weekly check ins, they're going to come up with you. You need to have grace, and you need to realize this is a journey, not a race. And you need to notice the small things along the way, and that there are things that you can't control.
You cannot control that a kid gets sick. You can't control how you react to that. You can't control if you get sick. But you can control that maybe you're going to take a rest day and you're going to choose the next day when you're feeling better to get back on your plan and work out. You have that window range.
For example, [00:18:00] if your goal is working out and you get sick or kids get sick and you can't work out because you don't feel good, that's okay. You made a window range. And if it doesn't work out that one week to hit that range, that doesn't mean it's all gone out the window, that you failed your plan. It just means you need to be a little bit more flexible and look at the bigger picture.
Oh, well, you got a whole month. So let's see what you do the other three weeks of the month. The other three weeks, that's 75 percent of the time. Great. So adjust that way in your thinking of when these things kind of happen and not over catastrophizing a plan that we can't stick to so rigidly.
Maybe you adapt by the fact that maybe you have a head cold, so you just go on a walk. Or maybe you say, you know what, I'm going to move my workouts around and today's going to be a rest day.
Or maybe you just get up the next day and you say, no biggie, today's a new day and I'm going to use this as my workout day. All of those are easy options to adapt Without making it such a catastrophe that you didn't hit your [00:19:00] goal for that week, quote unquote, but you know, the structure was there, but you didn't hit that structure, but you needed to be flexible. Let's say, for example, you are trying to save money. You cannot help that cars and appliances break. That just sometimes happens, and you might not save as much money that month.
And that's okay. But you can control the other aspects of the month and maneuver around based on the other ways that you plan to save money or the other ways you plan to adjust. Because here's the thing. You may not have saved that money because let's say an appliance in your house broke, your heater broke, and you've got to pay a couple hundred dollars for that, so you may not save that money that week, but you learned in other aspects of where you were trying to cut spending, you cut that spending, so you're creating that habit, so it may not have gone directly in the bank account because you needed it for that appliance, but you're creating that That habit, which is going to serve you the next month when that appliance doesn't break. [00:20:00]
Let's look at the example of if your goal is to eat better and you're trying to meal prep. Let's say one week that you didn't meal prep. You had a day, you made the plan that one day you were going to meal prep, and you were only going to eat out X amount of days, and now this week you ate out every day and you didn't meal prep.
Well, that's okay. Some weeks are busy, but what you need to do is look back and instead of sulking and quitting, instead look at your meal prep window. Maybe your meal prep window is too long and you don't have time to do that. Maybe you've like scheduled off three hours and because you could only get an hour, you're like, oh, why bother?
And you moved on. Well, maybe instead make it only an hour and see how much you can meal prep in that window. And then see what you can make live on the spot or see if you need to adjust the amount you're eating out that week because you have a sports game or you have something going on or maybe moving that meal prep window to a different time.
Maybe you thought it would work really great on Sunday afternoons, but Sunday afternoons something keeps coming up and you're not [00:21:00] able to do that. Maybe try to look at your schedule and see if there is a different time to be able to do that. Or adjust the type of food you're meal prepping. Maybe if it's something where you gotta be standing there and stirring or working, that's not gonna work as well.
You might want something where you're buying pre cut vegetables or pre cut different items that you're cooking and then you're only just putting it in the oven. Thinking about how to adjust that and be flexible with the time you're using or the day you're using or the amounts or the types of food.
It's going to allow you to continue with that goal, but it may not have been your initial plan of this amount of time for this amount of, you know, days I'm not doing this. You might have had to be flexible and adjusted that a little bit, but it actually is going to keep you going on that road to trying to eat more at home if your goal is to not eat out as much.
Flexibility, to me, is honestly the key. It is so crucial, that solid, [00:22:00] flexible plan, and that you have a plan, but you've got to be flexible with it. If you are not flexible, you're going to feel a lot of guilt and a lot of shame for not being able to stick with your plan. But if you can make a plan and see that things come up and see how to adapt, just like you would as an athlete in a game, Oh my gosh, this girl is shooting all the points.
Let's move this player over here. Let's move this player here. Let's do this play to kind of combat that. You're going to see results, but you're going to adapt. Same with parenting. You're noticing that a situation arises where you had a set plan, but the kid's not responding well.
You're going to need to adapt and you're going to need to adjust. Maybe you need to handle that situation, you know, with some consequences. Or maybe you need to be more gentle. It depends on obviously the situation. But you're going to adapt and then you're going to find a new flow. And that's the same thing for any goals, for anything that we [00:23:00] want to do.
We can't just think, Oh, our plan, our structure failed. We might need to rewrite that structure over and over and over and over again. And that is the flexibility and that is normal.
So As you walk away from this episode today, no matter what your goals are, no matter what your dreams are, I hope that they're big and beautiful and I hope that they inspire you, but I hope that your plans and your structure along the way are small, realistic, maintainable, and I hope you're not scared to use that mental eraser and erase them and write out new ideas and be flexible when things don't go to plan or to give yourself simply grace.
Maybe you don't need to erase The structure you have written out. Maybe you just need to give yourself a little bit of grace and notice when you're in hard phases in your life. I am not going to sit here and pretend that every phase in life is easy. There are phases where I'm able to do things really, really well and there are phases where I am not in all different aspects.
So give yourself grace in that way and make sure you're being realistic and flexible with [00:24:00] those plans to reach those amazing goals that you have. All right, that's it for today. At all costs, do not let your goals discourage you. They should excite you. You are doing so much better than you think you are.
We'll chat next week.