After several months of being "off the wagon" due to depression, I decided enough was enough, and it was time to turn it around and get back on course with fitness and weight loss.
To hold myself accountable, I set a goal (or challenge) for myself to visit the gym 30 times in July. This seemed practically impossible at the time. I joined a gym at the end of February. I had around 20 visits in March before depression started to creep around. I managed to get to the gym 14 times in April, but by May depression was in full swing... 7 visits for May, 3 for June. So, essentially, my goal for July was to increase my gym visits 1,000% from June to July. Seems crazy, right? Don't we usually give advice to "start with small changes"? What the hell was I thinking to even try?
Well, I did it. It was difficult at times, but obviously not impossible, and I've come to realize a big challenge was exactly what I needed to make big changes in my habits, discipline, and motivation.
I've always had a competitive streak, even with myself. I tend to go "all in" on important goals for myself (even for things that are actually not important), and the seeming impossibility of this goal definitely tapped into that aspect of my personality. I've noticed that "easy" goals are often much more difficult for me to achieve- I slack and procrastinate instead of trying. I had to make a goal that was difficult enough that I couldn't rationalize "I've got plenty of time, I'll do it tomorrow".
The beginning of July was hard. I was forcing myself to go to the gym. I skipped two days (I doubled up a couple of times on the weekend to make up for it... It helped that my social life is kind of in the toilet right now).
By mid-month, I had stopped going to the gym because I have to, and started going to the gym because that's what I do. It had become a habit, and I had figured out the best way to work it into my schedule.
By the end of the month, I started to even like and look forward to going. I feel comfortable with my workout routines, and have seen progress.
My 30th workout was yesterday, and to be honest, it was sort of a let down. Sure I'm proud that I set a goal and achieved it, but building up the habit and discipline to keep going is what I'm really proud of. So, I'll be back at the gym today for visit 31, and think about what "impossible" goal I should make for August.
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