Fitness, Health and Wellness Musings, Tips and the occasional rant'n'rave about finding your excellence from an Athens 2004 Olympian.

Friday, September 05, 2008

Record keeping for Motivation


When you're starting to look after yourself, whether its for the first time, or you're returning to good health, the best thing you can do is do the basics consistently and with purpose. They will form the foundation of your everyday life and before long you won't even notice you're doing it.

I know it's hard to believe that something so simple as the elements of the Five Essentials can provide the foundation to you living long and well, but if you give it a go, you'll notice small differences in a very short time and bigger differences in the way you think and act soon after. But you won't know if you don't pay attention, and the best way to pay attention is to keep a simple log or diary. Draw yourself up a table or checklist that includes the five essentials (Wake up breaths, Water, Movement, good food and great sleep) and add one more column so that you can record how you feel for the day - I do this with simple "Smileys". I'm either feeling Good :-), Average :-, or Not good :-(.

The best thing about keeping a log like this is that it helps remind you of the good habits you've chosen to take on, and as you tick off each one, you can give yourself a pat on the back for moving towards your goal of changing your health and wellness for the better (that's five times you can cheer yourself on every day!).

Something so simple is surprisingly motivating and before long you'll notice that you're feeling better more of the time - even more motivation! Give it a go and start reaching for your potential.