Day 148: Mini-goals and NSV's

I have been mentioning both of these items recently and I thought I would expound briefly on them. We all have our primary goal: our goal weight. But reaching that goal can be a long and arduous process and feel like it's taking forever. Having that in mind, we need to set mini-goals for ourselves. Break the overall goal weight into smaller, more easily-reached goals . That way, when you reach that goal, you're like "Hey, I did it!" and then you can focus on the next mini-goal, etc. I remember my first mini-goal was to lose 20 pounds after surgery. I really didn't expect to hit it in the first week, but I blasted right past it. After that, I started setting goals to specific numbers because of the amount it represented or because of some significant meaning for what that number meant to me. 343 was significant because it was 50 pounds lost since surgery. Then 320 because it would be 100 pounds lost overall. Then 300 because it's a solid round number and it would be 120 pounds lost overall. Then 393 because it represents 100 pounds lost since surgery. I just passed 280 and that represents 140 pounds lost overall. My current mini-goal is 275 because that was the weight I was when I graduated from high school. It's also right around the corner, so I should hit it fairly quickly. At least by the time my 25 year reunion comes up at the end of the month. My next goal after that is 250 pounds, just because I like the number. Mini-goals. Figure out what you want and write them down so you can track them.

NSV's, or Non-Scale Victories aren't really something you can set, more like something you notice that you have achieved. Usually you realize that it's something you've doing for a short while that you couldn't do before. My first one was when I was able to cross my legs when I was sitting. Then being able to bend over and tie my shoes. Getting into a smaller size of clothes. Changes in your body that mean you can get away from some treatments you have been doing for a while such as diabetes, high cholesterol, or sleep apnea. But start tracking them when you notice them.

Now you may be asking, "Why should I track them?" Because if you track them and write them down as you discover or achieve them, if you start getting discouraged, look back at everything you have achieved and remind yourself of how far you have come. Morale is as important as everything else on this journey. Keep yourself motivated with little things like these and you'll find the journey won't seem so long and arduous.

Ciao!