How To Be A Failure….

I’ve been struggling with writing this post, because recently, my internal dialogue is reaming “how can you possibly tell others how to set goals when you can’t meet your own?” Being a dietitian, I sometimes feel like a hypocrite.

I have come to this point so many times in my life. I’ve set goals. Easy Goals. At least I thought they were easy. Here‘s the thing though….

Sometimes in life certain things will be really good…. your new business is taking off…. your social life is finally blooming in a new place….

But other aspect of your life may not be going as well…. the goal you set to cook dinner at home or meal prep for lunch hasn’t been met in weeks… Despite your best intentions, you’ve only been managing to work out once per week

This is exactly how this last month has felt for me. I set the goal to save money and cook more at home in March. Well, I can count the number of “well balance” meals I cooked in March on one hand. On the other hand, I could count the number of times I went to the gym.

Monopolized by other commitments, I found time my biggest challenge to planning  elaborate meals at home and exercising. I kept reverting to my staples of grilled cheese, apples and peanut butter. Bedtime seemed to come before I could squeeze in a workout each day.

However, I did well this month in some ways. I still ate fruits or vegetables with almost every meal, chose whole grains more often than refined grains, consumed proper portions, and picked plant-based options when dining out.

Some months you may spend more time nurturing your physical health and others you may spend more time nurturing your mental health. This past month for me has been all about personal and professional growth while I transition jobs into starting my own business. This growth has been amazing, making this month positive for me in a lot of ways.

Therefore I try not to focus completely on the areas I struggled, and praise myself for the areas I excelled. It is important to remind yourself: being healthy is about your overall health.

I’ve talked about positivity before and there is nothing as important as staying positive when we fail. What other choice do I have right now?

I didn’t meet my goal. So do I just give up? Do I not try anymore? I accept this status quo? Accept that my lifestyle may cause my life to be shorter and let go of caring? Beat myself up for being human?

Personally, that doesn’t seem like a life I want to live. Therefore when I have months like these I remind myself… first, that I have proven I am capable of meeting my goals in the past and second, that every month may not be all good or bad.

Failure is what we decide it is.

Yes, I did not meet the exact goal I set for myself, however that does not mean I wasn’t successful in other areas of my life. This knowledge gives me confidence that I can be successful in meeting my goals, I just need to keep working toward them.

By this time in the year, many individuals have started to fall away from their new years resolutions to be healthier. This is a significant turning point for most of you when you have to decide to keep fighting or fall back into old habits. I want to encourage you all to keep your head up and continue trying!