How Do You Stay Focused on Your Diet?

It can feel challenging to stick to the goals we’ve set for ourselves. Whether you think you’ve lost motivation, you’re tired of the food prep, or you feel like you’re not seeing results, it’s easy to throw in the towel. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, get in better shape, or eat more veggies, habits are hard to build and quick to crumble. Today on the blog, one of our dietitians gives you the scoop on how to stay focused on your goals, even when your motivation is waning.

Be Specific: Make Sure Your Goals Are Realistic

First, it’s important to set goals that aren’t too broad or too ambitious. It’s easy to get carried away and think, “where some are good, more is better”. 

We’re ALL for setting big goals, but when you’re embarking on new healthy habits, it can be helpful to start slow and build from there.

We like to focus on making SMART goals; 

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Realistic
• Timely

Let’s say your goal is to eat at home more often. That goal by itself is pretty ambiguous. What kind of food will you eat? How will you prepare it? How long do you want to keep this habit? Instead, be more specific; I’m going to prepare food on Sundays, pack my lunch for work Monday through Friday and eat dinner at home four nights per week for two months.’ See how that’s a little more concrete? You’re much more likely to follow through on your goals if you’ve set very specific parameters around what each one means. If you want more information on setting goals, check out our goal-setting blog.

Make a Measurable Plan

This is crucial! Even the best-laid goals won’t be successful if you don’t plan ahead. If you plan to do a Whole30, what are the steps you need to take to make that happen? Perhaps you want to hire a coach for motivation, or maybe you won’t have time to prepare your food so you need to enlist the help of a prepared meals service. Regardless of your goal, planning will help set you up for success.

If your goal is to eat healthier and you’ve already gotten specific with it, stave off boredom by trying new recipes regularly. Incorporate at least 1-2 new meal options each week. 

Be Attainable: Visualize Your Goals

Let’s walk into the land of ‘woo-woo’ for a second. If you don’t believe change is possible for you, it’ll be really hard to change your old habits. Let’s say you want to change your nutrition habits. If you view yourself as incapable of change or continually remind yourself that you’ve always been unhealthy, it’ll be challenging to make a lasting change. Instead, view yourself as a healthy person with healthy habits. Hold an image of yourself as the person you aspire to be, and lean into that when things feel hard. 

Having a vision of your future self can make it easier to make decisions that align with who you want to be. What decision would a healthy person make when faced with the option of skipping meal prep? You can use that vision of “future you” to guide your daily decisions. It works in the short-term, too. Let’s say you don’t feel well when you overeat, or maybe you get a bad headache when you eat gluten. When faced with the opportunity to overindulge or eat something you know doesn’t make you feel great, it can be helpful to think about how you’ll feel in an hour or two or tomorrow. Is eating that food still worth it, given the side effects? Sometimes the answer is ‘absolutely,’ but other times, it’s a resounding no.

Be Realistic: Just Get Started

This is perhaps the most important one. Even if at first you stumble, it’s not a big deal unless you make it one. The quickest way back to feeling like your best step is to just get back to healthier choices. Eat a healthy meal (we can help with that!), get back to your home workout routine, or go on a walk at lunch. Most of the time, action leads to motivation and not the other way around. Sometimes, waiting for motivation means you’ll be waiting for a.long.time.

So, instead, take the first step. Start moving the dial in the direction you want to head, and you’ll notice pretty quickly that you’re starting to feel better, and the things that used to feel hard keep getting easier. Small, positive steps add up, we promise! And if you do make an inevitable misstep, remember that one unhealthy meal (or one missed workout) won’t undo your progress unless you let it by continuing down that path. Instead, get right back to your healthy habits as soon as you can. It’s called balance!

Be Timely & Follow-through 

All of the planning and preparation in the world doesn’t matter if you don’t eventually take a leap and do.the.thing. Start your Whole30, meal plan for the week or go for a walk for the first time. Take action and follow through. And remember, it’s not always going to be smooth sailing, especially in the beginning. The important thing is to stay consistent, even if some days you don’t feel like it. 

Be Kind to Yourself

If you have fallen off your goals or lost focus, make sure that you treat yourself with kindness. When you come from a place of love (for yourself and your body), it makes it a lot easier to get back where you’d like to be. This can be easier said than done, though, which is why we have some advice. Approach your missteps with curiosity, not judgment. In other words; how can you learn from the situation? Since you already know what tripped you up, you can make a mental (or actual!) note of how to better cope with those triggers or ways to avoid them altogether. You’re much more likely to be successful in the second go-round because you have a plan in place.

Hopefully, these tips are helpful as you refocus on your goals and hold yourself accountable. As always, Snap is here as your partner in health, giving you the information and encouragement you need to transform your health and be your best self.