Nothing goes perfectly for any of us every single day. Pets get sick. Appliances break. Weekend plans suddenly shift. And somehow, all the laundry is never ever done. When a plethora of “little things” pile up, it gets difficult to maintain the energy to prioritize healthy living.
These are the days it gets far too easy to order takeout, skip going to the gym or miss a chapter meeting or two. Staying motivated is tricky at times. So, the next time you feel stuck on your wellness journey, use this mental visualization technique to positively refocus on your goals.
Start by sitting in a comfortable position, then close your eyes and begin to imagine there are five paths in front of you. Which of the following do you feel most drawn to?
- The Straight Path: At this moment, you crave ease above all else. Envision doing short stretches in the morning or preparing soup for supper to keep life simple for the next few days ahead.
- The U-Turn: You allow yourself to acknowledge how much you miss the water aerobics class you have not done in a while. Make a mental note to ask a friend to go with you soon to nix not going becoming your new norm.
- The New Trail: You have saved several recipes this year from TOPS News, but have yet to try any of them. Visualize yourself in the kitchen making 2-3 within the next week.
- The Challenging Trek: Maybe you already sense that a new challenge is needed to move past your current plateau. Consider whether you are willing to commit to making meatless meals on Mondays for a full month. Or sign up to participate in a local 5k event!
- The Social Stroll: If only you could bottle the enthusiasm you get during chapter meetings for those days when it feels like you are slugging through it solo. Remind yourself that fellow members are usually just a phone call, text or email away. Also, consider coordinating a weekly group stroll outside of your regular meeting times if others would find it helpful, too.
Which of these paths are you curious to explore next? Tell us your “why” as a comment below.
And since it’s my birthday month, I am having a pretty sensational September thus far. Hope you each can say the same!
~Rachel
It is wonderful that all five paths help us to live our healthiest, happiest lives every day! A change of scenery brightens up each day of the journey. It is wonderful to immerse oneself in the experience. Today, is quite a busy one and I am choosing the straight path in my health journey to stay on track as I deal other aspects of life that claim my attention as well!
Hi Barb,
“High five” on pointing out that each paths has the potential to “help us live our healthiest, happiest lives” daily. That is definitely one of the key takeaways from this month’s blog!
The social stroll is the one that would be open for me to try. I have only been with TOPS for 10 months. The group I joined have been together for years and being a” newbie” I am not included in phone calls or e-mails or decisions. I need to continue to reach out to live my most mentally and healthy journey to stay on track.
I appreciate your honesty about what how you’ve been feeling as a newer member of your current TOPS chapter, Jean. I would encourage you to connect with the chapter’s leader to share how you would like to be a part of any additional communication or activities that regularly happen beyond the chapter meetings amongst the group.
the straight path. we have a hectic 2 weeks before us, so it’s menu planning the night before with dinner prep in the evening.
Taking the time to menu plan and meal prep ahead of time is always a smart move when you have a FULL schedule multiple days in a row…so GOOD THINKING, Wilhelmina!
These are wonderful opportunities and challenges. I plan on sharing this with my Chapter AZ-0090 this coming week. I’m making copies. Thank you.
I will choose, for my personal self one-of three paths for the coming week. It’s between the U-turn, the New trail and the Social trail. Maybe I’ll try a new one each week.
Go for it, Shannon!
I really like the idea of choosing one of these paths to explore weekly. And let us know how it goes.
Happy birthday Rachel! I am happy you are having a pretty sensational September thus far and hope this trend continued for the next year.
THANK YOU for that birthday “blessing,” Lorraine 🙂