How Are You Measuring Your Progress?

Welcome to the whole body upgrade podcast. I want to begin by Welcoming in the directions east/south/west/north/directions that are above, directions that are below and those that are within.  I call in the elements of air, fire, earth, and water. Welcoming the well ancestors, guides and compassionate beings of the light. Acknowledging I’m on the land of the Creek and the Cherokee in what is now known as Athens Ga.

Hello my friends! How are you? I’m doing amazing today. So good! As we get started here today, I wanted to let you know I have room for 3 people who are ready to take the step into Vibrant Health, but you must sign up by September 30th. This is the last time I’m taking 1:1 clients this year! It’s 3 months to have you feeling vibrant, and doing the things you LOVE again. Playing with your kids, hiking in the woods, dancing with your friends, or even just getting up in the morning without hitting the snooze button 12 times! Let’s face it, the last 18 months have been pretty crappy. It’s time for a vibrant finish with Vibrant Health. Imagine going into Hannakha and Christamas time feeling GOOD instead of exhausted! Can you imagine? I’ve got a link to schedule a free 20 minute call in the show notes. Don’t miss this chance to have your year end with health!

Today I’m going to talk about measuring outcomes. That sounds kind of boring doesn’t it- but it really isn’t! It’s all about getting what you want. In speech language pathology we spend a lot of time working on goals and knowing what it is we want to see change in with our clients so we can accurately measure what we want to see. In wellness the goals are slightly different. I have many clients come to me that feel stuck or are exhausted. All they know is that they want to feel better, have more energy, have less pain, so they can do what they love- whatever that is. Maybe they want to play with their kids, go for a bike ride with their husband, go dancing with friends, or hiking. One client’s goal was that she didn’t want to cancel right before, because she often just didn’t have the energy or she was in pain. 

But here’s the sneaky thing. So often we are using the wrong measurement to get us to that goal. What do I mean by that? Most of us only notice when we are feeling pain or when we can’t get out of bed, but don’t notice it when things are going RIGHT. So when you don’t have brain fog, or you wake up on time to go to work, or you don’t need to stay in bed all day, you are LESS likely to notice it. And then the brain makes up new goals. Crazy right?! The brain keeps moving the goal line and doesn’t allow you to celebrate your wins. Often when I go back to the complaints that clients have at the beginning of working together they are all resolved. They feel clear, they are no longer stuck, they are meditating regularly, they are happy! And yet, there is always something more. 

Going back to the client that didn’t want to cancel right before going out with friends or her husband, due to the pain. After working together, that was no longer an issue! She was exercising 4-5x a week doing things that she loved. She felt stronger and had more energy! Her pain was much lower than it had been and she no longer needed to manage it with a constant stream of ibuprofen. But her brain wanted to point out that she hadn’t continued losing weight (she had lost weight! And quite a bit!). I pointed this out to her and when we looked at it together she saw how far she had come and how she didn’t need to use only weight loss as a measure of progress. 

My question for you is are you using the right measure to determine your progress? Are you celebrating your accomplishments? This is why having a coach or an accountability buddy is so important. For my clients, I can see how much work you’ve put in and the progress you’ve made, even when your brain wants to tell you it’s not true. I can remind you of all the good things and send you out into the world with reminders of how amazing you are (because it’s true)!

It’s so hard to see our own progress! The brain wants to play down all the wins, and play up the negatives. That’s just the negative bias- our brains look for the negative as a habit (it’s how the brain works). But we can teach it to look for the positive. You can celebrate that you only hit the snooze button 3 times instead of 4 this morning. You can celebrate the ¼ of a mile that you walked. You can celebrate putting veggies in your lunch this week! Those are all measurable goals that demonstrate that you are feeling better, that you are nourishing yourself, and that you are doing what you want to be doing. 

The patriarchy wants to tell us that we need to make huge progress on only how thin and how attractive we are to men. But how do YOU want to measure your progress? What would feel good to you? Where do you want to be in 3 or 6 months? If you aren’t sure, schedule a free 20 minute Vibrant Health Chat. Part of my superpower is helping people get clear and knowing the right path for them. 

Ok my friends, I hope this is helpful as you change how you nourish your body. Thank you so much for listening. I’m seeing all of you in your own divine light. Take good care of yourself.