Getting Fit with Firbo

Hi MishelW,

I also have fibromyalgia, and between the pain and extreme fatigue it's become a detriment to weight loss as well as everyday life. I'm [nearly] 34 and trying to loose 30-40 lbs myself. Although I have a solid understanding of nutrition and generally eat healthy, it's the exercise that I struggle with most. Small, unique goals and rewards are a BIG help when trying to stay on track and stay positive (I'll elaborate more below). Accountability plays a huge part in success. I'd be happy to help if I can. I could use some accountability myself!
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Goal Setting 101
(for anyone who isn't practicing this already, it's key):

- Goals must be reasonable and attainable: smaller milestones like "lose 5 lbs," "get down a pant size," or even something like "do a 20 minute workout 5 days this week." Typically you want to target something that is possible but not too easy, and breaks your biggest challenges in to smaller, more manageable chunks. Good tactic for life in general.

- Rewards are a MUST. They help reinforce success and motivation. What you chose for a reward is important, and it's personal. It has to be something special enough that it's not something that commonly occurs and will effectively motivate you. Think of something that would be sort of a guilty pleasure, or that you wouldn't ordinarily get or do for yourself, but would really like. It doesn't have to be a monetary/material reward either, just something that motivates you. Focusing on that reward will help you get through some temptations. Your reward has to be better than the temptation though!

- Do not use food or any consumables (like wine/beer) as a reward- that's just counter productive.

- Write the goals/rewards down and actually look at them regularly. Post pictures of the reward where you might see it often, or near your temptations. Using pictures are not just good for smaller goals, but for the big goal as well. Humans are visual creatures.

- Do stuff that makes achieving that goal easier. Set yourself up for success. If the goal is to start doing yoga this week, make sure everything you need is ready to go/use. Go through the cabinets weekly and give away any tempting things that could sabotage your goals. Eliminate anything that might give you an excuse to not stick with your plan.

- Change up the goals and rewards so you don't get bored.