If you’re outcome-driven like me, the idea of celebrating your progress may not sound very appealing.
It could also be that you don’t believe the progress is worth celebrating, which is often a symptom of unworthiness.
Either way, I get it. I set big goals and hustle my butt off toward them. And in so doing, and if I don’t catch myself, I totally tune out the milestones and the journey and the smaller wins.
The problem with doing that is that once you reach the outcome, it’s usually not as exciting as you think it’ll be.
Oh, it can be exciting, at first. But inevitably, “Now what?” syndrome sets in, and you start looking for the next thing you need to do.
A friend of mine likes to say the magic is in the journey, and that is SO true.
The journey is where all the best stuff happens. It’s where, when you tell others about your experience, the stories and lessons you share will come from.
Think about it. When you pick up a book, or turn on a movie, how boring would it be to read the intro and the end, but have no context for why what happens in the end came about, or why it matters?
The magic happens throughout the book or movie, not at the end.
And it’s the same with your weight loss journey – with anything you wanna do, really.
One thing I see people do on their Code Red journey is minimize their progress, with bull crap like, “I’m only down 5 pounds this week,” or “I still have a long way to go.”
Belittling your progress is TERRIBLE for motivation.
Instead of doing that, celebrate every single step. Not just in your mind – I’m talking tell people who’ll celebrate with you, and set up rewards for yourself.
Don’t just wait for goal weight to set up rewards. Set up milestones between where you are and goal.
After you get to goal, set up maintenance rewards! People get hyper-focused on the weight loss part, but that’s only a tiny part of the journey. Maintenance is for LIFE, and that is absolutely worth celebrating! Every month, very three months, every six months – celebrate that you’ve stayed at your goal.
The outcome is fine to keep in mind. It gives directions to your actions in the now.
But do not live for the outcome. Live for, and celebrate, the experience of reaching the outcome. It’s where the best parts of your life happen, and where your strongest motivation comes from.