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10 Ways to Hold Yourself Accountable

If I asked you if eating decent food would keep you healthy, you would say ‘of course,’ right? And if I asked whether exercising and moving regularly was also a key factor for health and wellness, you would most likely respond with a yes. So if we know that nutrition plus fitness is the magic formula for staying healthy, why don’t we do it? Why do we prioritize one over the other? Why do we put one on the back burner and only get serious about it when we’ve been slapped in the face by a wake-up call, such as getting out of breath walking the dog or a being diagnosed as pre-diabetic?

In my experience working with hundreds of individuals at RIP Training, the key is accountability. We’re often willing to let ourselves down time after time, but when someone else is watching us, we show up for them.

We show up for others because we don’t want to disappoint them, but yet we willingly disappoint ourselves time after time. We justify why we can’t follow through on our nutrition plan, we make excuses for why we have to skip training today and we follow it up with a promise to try again tomorrow—or better yet, to start fresh on Monday. Meanwhile, we’re subconsciously logging every time we didn’t show up for ourselves as just another failure, and over time, we begin to see ourselves as incapable, inept and weak-minded. We start to believe our own excuses as truth and not as what they really are, excuses.

Relying on others to hold us accountable is OK—in the short term. When we’re just getting started, we need that assistance. We need that encouragement and support while we develop good habits. At RIP Training, we have a framework of accountability to help those wanting to get started. We send reminders, we check in, we acknowledge you every time you walk through the door, we fist bump, we follow up and we celebrate with you each time you reach a milestone.

Our community of fellow members also helps in this accountability effort. That friend who is normally in class with you notices when you haven’t been there and sends you a friendly text asking how you’re doing. We let you know you aren’t forgotten and we want you here.

Now here’s where the truth hurts a little bit: No matter how much others keep you accountable, it all comes back to you. It’s up to you to consciously choose every day to make progress toward your goals. You could have a drill sergeant scream at you until they’re blue in the face to go to the gym but only you can get yourself up and make yourself go. We will always cheer you on and help you, but if you haven’t bought in to the process, it won’t work in the long term.

So how do we stop letting ourselves down and create a safety net for reaching our goals?

Here are 10 tips for holding yourself accountable to your goals:

1. Engage in the community. We want to help you! It is what we do! If you don’t engage, you are missing out on a big piece of the magic. Who wouldn’t want a group of like-minded people cheering you on every step of the way?

2. Set reminders on your phone. Book in your sessions ahead of time. Set reminders for meal times and schedule out time to meal prep and cook decent meals.

3. Tell a coach when you’re planning to come to class. By putting your intentions out there, you have created an expectation that you will want to follow through on. Simply saying “I’ll see you tomorrow” when you leave is a small way of committing yourself to your next session.

4. Print off a calendar, hang it in a visible spot and cross off the days you hit the gym or stayed true to your nutrition plan so that you can visually see all the marks of your success. It’s satisfying to see your efforts adding up and will reinforce your intentions to keep going!

5. Share your story on social media or another public forum. There’s something to be said for putting it all out there! This isn’t about showing off or bragging, it’s just a way for you to publicly say “I’m doing it and I got it done today”.

6. Take progress pics and track your performance. To see our progress, we have to remember where we started. We get used to how we currently look because change is subtle and gradual. By looking back to our starting point and comparing it to where we are now, we can take stock of the progress we have made since day one. By tracking your performance in your workouts can easily see that the work you’re putting in is actually making you fitter.

7. Set quarterly goal-setting meetings. If you are a member at RIP Training, we want to schedule these meetings with you every quarter, so reach out to get yours on the calendar! If you aren’t a member here, find a friend who needs accountability, too, and make quarterly dates to review your progress and set goals for the future.

8. Constantly remind yourself of your “why.” A goal is great, but if we don’t know why we want to reach it, it doesn’t mean much. Ask yourself why you want to be healthier. How will it impact your life? How will it make you feel? What is your reason for getting out of bed to train or choosing to eat the healthier choice over the easy one. Once you have a solid “why,” remind yourself of it daily so that you internalize it and keep it close to your heart.

9. Don’t make it all or nothing. Your own mind will be your biggest obstacle. There will be ups and downs. There will be plateaus. There will be stress and self-doubt. Don’t let those things knock you off your path. Acknowledge them, thank them for teaching you something about yourself and then continue to make forward progress.

10. Reward yourself for reaching micro-goals. Set small goals along the path to your BIG goals and reward yourself for hitting those milestones along the way. An example could be going out to dinner after you train 4 days a week for month. If you want to focus on nutrition you can reward yourself for each solid week of staying on track or keeping your eating out to below an acceptable minimum for the week. These rewards don’t have to cost money, either—get creative with things you enjoy and make it fun!

There are many other ways to keep yourself accountable, so find what works for you. Something that worked once might not work forever—switch things up often to stay excited and motivated about your success.

If you need help getting started, feel free to contact us! We would love to set up a No-Sweat Intro with you where we talk about you, your current lifestyle and your goals, and help you make a plan of action.

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