The 5 Reasons We Don’t Reach Our Wellness Goals and How To Conquer Them
It can be hard to stay motivated to reach our wellness goals.
We all know that reaching our wellness goals is essential to our wellbeing, but it’s easy to get sidetracked. We can encounter many obstacles in achieving goals. Research shows that only 8% of people actually achieve their New Year’s goals.
It’s no secret that most of us have trouble incorporating new healthy habits into our daily lives. We all want to be healthier, but we can’t seem to make it happen for some reason. Well, I’ve got news for you. You can overcome these obstacles!
This blog post will discuss five common obstacles people encounter when working on their goals. With this information, you’ll stay on track with your goal achievement!
Obstacle #1: Lack of Time
One of the common obstacles is lack of time.
As a busy mom, I know how hard it is to fit everything into a day. There isn’t much time left for personal needs between work and family. It’s not so much that you don’t want to exercise, meditate or eat well. You just can’t find the time!
I struggled with finding time to work out, but I found a way to make it work. I started to get up earlier in the morning to have some time to myself before the craziness of the day started. I use that time to work out, making a big difference in my daily stress levels. It was definitely challenging at first, but it became a routine. Now I can’t imagine going through my day without my workout!
Solution:
The best way to fight a lack of time is to be flexible with your schedule.
Start by setting aside 15 minutes every day for exercise. Then, slowly increase that amount of time until you can fit in an hour or more. The time you carve out in the morning or evening is worth it!
“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.”
Napoleon Hill
Obstacle #2: Lack of Motivation
Another common challenge is that you don’t feel motivated. I know how it feels. By the time I finish working, it’s sometimes hard to find the motivation to eat healthy foods. It’s easier for me to grab fast food on the way home instead of making my own dinner.
I’ve found it challenging to stay motivated, especially when it comes to fitness. However, there are ways I worked around this to stay on track. I found that setting small, achievable goals helped jumpstart my motivation levels.
Reaching a big fitness goal (like running a race) might seem hard at first. But it is much more possible to achieve a smaller goal like walking/running 5 times in two weeks. Once you achieve that one, you can set a bigger goal.
Another option is to use a fitness app. I never imagined running a mile, but I became more driven the minute I started working on the Couch to 5K program. Within a few weeks, I was running 2 miles at a stretch. Sometimes you need this kind of external motivation to get things done.
Solution: Setting small, achievable goals is a great way to increase motivation. Achieving your wellness goals can feel like an uphill battle.
Breaking it down into smaller wins will make it feel more manageable and less daunting. Don’t make the common mistake of setting goals that are too lofty! Goals that are unrealistic will leave you feeling discouraged.
Once you reach your first goal, achieving new ones will be much easier!
Obstacle #3: Fear of Failure
Have you ever not started something because you were afraid you couldn’t reach your goals? We all want to successfully achieve our wellness goals, but many fear they won’t succeed. Plus, stepping outside of our comfort zone can be scary.
Not stepping out of your comfort zone is a mistake. I know reaching your wellness goals is complicated, and sometimes you may fail. But it’s okay! Failure isn’t the end of the world. You just have to pick yourself up and try again. It’s a learning curve, and in my experience, reaching my wellness goals got easier every time I tried again.
I know I’ve let fear stop me from reaching my fitness goals in the past. I set a goal to run faster than a 12-minute mile, but I felt like it was impossible. I had never run that fast; this goal intimidated me. My husband was a fast runner, and that was getting in my head. I finally realized I shouldn’t compare my abilities to his. Instead, I needed to find something I could improve upon each time. So I started setting smaller goals-like running a mile without stopping. In three months, I could run under an 11-minute mile. All I needed was to do a better job of breaking it down into achievable steps.
Solution: To reach your wellness goals, you need to set smaller steps that you can achieve. This will help you feel more confident and less scared as you work towards your goal.
You can’t expect to reach a massive goal in one day! The best thing you can do is improve a little every time, and not compare yourself to others.
Obstacle #4: Fear of Success
You might think, what…fear of success? That doesn’t make any sense!
Believe it or not, reaching your wellness goals can actually be scary. When some people lose weight, they sometimes become a “new person.” Suddenly, reaching your wellness goals can be a double-edged sword. Other people in your life might not like this change, and they might not like the confidence and independence you will gain.
Solution: Figuring out why you want to reach wellness goals is essential. What do these goals mean to you?
Reduce the fear of success by reaching your health goals for you, not other people. Don’t worry about what other people think of the changes in your life.
Stay true to yourself and know you can handle anything when you reach your goals.
“Yesterday I dared to struggle, today I dare to win.”
Bernadette Devlin
Obstacle #5: Self-sabotage
As a wellness coach, I see this one a lot! For example, a client might work with me for a few weeks and then disappear. They are plugging along, reaching every goal, and then BAM-they stop.
What happened? This is self-sabotage. Self-sabotage occurs when reaching your wellness goals feels too good to be true, so you just give up.
Another way people experience self-sabotage is not believing in themselves. Successful people believe they can do it! Negative thinking won’t get you anywhere! To learn other ways people experience self sabotage, read this article.
Solution:
Stop the self-sabotage and negative thinking.
Make sure to have faith in yourself and follow through on your commitments. Identify and get rid of any negative thoughts that are holding you back.
Belief in yourself will help you reach your wellness goals!
Summary
This blog post talked about five obstacles that can stop you from reaching your wellness goals. But don’t worry, we also gave you tips on how to overcome them! Remember that it takes time and effort to achieve your goals. Start working on them today and overcome any obstacles in your way! Want to learn 7 steps to reach your goals? Check out this article.
If you are struggling with a weight loss plateau, download this free guide with 10 tips to overcome anything standing in your way!
