I’m excited to be dusting off my laptop and writing again! Thanks for giving this a read. Is this a post about pirates? Well, not quite. But maybe I’ll throw an “Arr, Matey” in from time to time.
I’m 20 months in to learning how to be a parent, and with a toddler in tow, life is very different. As the kiddo grows and becomes more independent, I’m finding that I have some breathing room to concentrate on myself as a person and not just as a mom. While working with a coach colleague of mine (thanks, Kathryn!), I’ve tried to create some manageable goals to strive for to affect some meaningful change in my life. One facet that I struggle with is exercise at home. Sign me up for a gym membership and a class and I’ll be there every time. But taking a half hour or five minutes or even one minute to do something physical at home, and I’ll always find something else that’s more pressing. Sound familiar?
So, my goal for the last 9 months has been to work two planks into my routine on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. How hard can that be? I have a floor and a body and 60 seconds. Easy peasey. Except that there are dishes to be put in the dishwasher and a toddler climbing on top of me screaming in my ear and adding 20 pounds, and wouldn’t it be nice to go outside on a walk? So the planks don’t get done. I put a reminder on my phone, but I ignore it. And then my back starts to hurt and I know that if I had just done the planks, that it would feel stronger and I might not be in pain. Arr, matey, that’s certainly frustrating. Sound familiar?
You may remember a past post about SMART goals. Creating goals that are Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-bound can help you achieve what you set out to do. My missing piece was setting a particular time of day. Our schedule is never the same two days in a row, with the exception of lunch and nap, so I would keep putting off doing them until eventually it was bedtime. I wasn’t setting a particular time to actually fit them in. So, I finally said that I would do two planks as soon as I put her down for her nap, even if she wasn’t asleep yet. Before checking my phone, before putting the lunch dishes away, before finishing my uneaten lunch. What happened? Well, I started doing more planks! It wasn’t perfect, and sometimes I forgot or decided not to do them. But by in large, I was able to make them more of a habit in my afternoon, and my back felt the improvement.
Have you ever felt the pull of procrastination, even when you really wanted to accomplish your goal? Were you able to schedule those goals or did they always lie just out of reach? I’d love to hear your experience. Ahoy, matey!
Glad to be back,
Coach Amanda
amanda@wellfulcoaching.com
I’m 20 months in to learning how to be a parent, and with a toddler in tow, life is very different. As the kiddo grows and becomes more independent, I’m finding that I have some breathing room to concentrate on myself as a person and not just as a mom. While working with a coach colleague of mine (thanks, Kathryn!), I’ve tried to create some manageable goals to strive for to affect some meaningful change in my life. One facet that I struggle with is exercise at home. Sign me up for a gym membership and a class and I’ll be there every time. But taking a half hour or five minutes or even one minute to do something physical at home, and I’ll always find something else that’s more pressing. Sound familiar?
So, my goal for the last 9 months has been to work two planks into my routine on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. How hard can that be? I have a floor and a body and 60 seconds. Easy peasey. Except that there are dishes to be put in the dishwasher and a toddler climbing on top of me screaming in my ear and adding 20 pounds, and wouldn’t it be nice to go outside on a walk? So the planks don’t get done. I put a reminder on my phone, but I ignore it. And then my back starts to hurt and I know that if I had just done the planks, that it would feel stronger and I might not be in pain. Arr, matey, that’s certainly frustrating. Sound familiar?
You may remember a past post about SMART goals. Creating goals that are Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-bound can help you achieve what you set out to do. My missing piece was setting a particular time of day. Our schedule is never the same two days in a row, with the exception of lunch and nap, so I would keep putting off doing them until eventually it was bedtime. I wasn’t setting a particular time to actually fit them in. So, I finally said that I would do two planks as soon as I put her down for her nap, even if she wasn’t asleep yet. Before checking my phone, before putting the lunch dishes away, before finishing my uneaten lunch. What happened? Well, I started doing more planks! It wasn’t perfect, and sometimes I forgot or decided not to do them. But by in large, I was able to make them more of a habit in my afternoon, and my back felt the improvement.
Have you ever felt the pull of procrastination, even when you really wanted to accomplish your goal? Were you able to schedule those goals or did they always lie just out of reach? I’d love to hear your experience. Ahoy, matey!
Glad to be back,
Coach Amanda
amanda@wellfulcoaching.com
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