Welcome to the new year my friend!! How have you done so far?! It is after all the first Friday of the New Year. Did you start strong on Monday and you are kind of slacking?! Maybe you are still going strong, but you are worried that you might not make it through the weekend as strong?!

I wanted to sit down and type this blog post for you. It is actually a series of some things I believe will be a game changer for you in the new year. Curious to know what we are going to chat about?! Good, because I cannot wait to tell  you.

When I sat down this past weekend to work on my on list of goals for the new year, I decided 2017 was going to be the year of the COUTURE body! Totally custom, totally unique, totally rockin’, and totally 100% everything I ever dreamed of. Couture (said in my french accent)

So here is the deal, there are steps we have to complete BEFORE we can just expect our goals to appear, but I know you know that. I know you know that accomplishing your goals takes effort, but where do we start?! I know you know that accomplishing goals takes time, but how much time?! I know you know that accomplishing goals means sacrifices, but what exactly do I HAVE to give up and what can I keep in my life?! You’re in luck, because I. Have. Answers!
Alright…

So today we must talk about goal setting. I am going to share three tips that I personally use when setting my own goals. In the next couple days, I will share some things in your diet that need to go NOW and what you can add in to your day to day! In the next few days I will explain why you DON’T have to give up carbs and why you SHOULD skip cardio. Yep, I said them both, you aren’t dreaming!

Goal setting step 1:

First, you MUST… hear me… MUST write down your goals! You can use a journal for this, TJ Maxx has beautiful journals! People with written goals are 50% more likely to accomplish their goal and 92% of new years goals fail by January 15th. Is this enough to inspire you to write down your goals?! 3 out of 100 adults write down their goals. PLEASE tell me you are going to be one of the three this year. Okay, great! Moving on!

Goal setting step 2:

Decide what goal you are going to set. I like to set goals in 9 different areas of life. Spiritual, Personal Development, Health, Romance, Family, Business/Career, Finances, Fun/Recreation, and Social.

Okay, okay my overachiever friend, I want you to choose no more… NO MORE… than 2 goals for each area. Putting down too many goals is setting yourself up for failure. You can ALWAYS add more as you accomplish your goals.

Next, choose SMART goals. SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-based.
Specific, the who, what, why of you goal. Measurable establishes how much, how many, how will you know when the goal is reached? Attainable goals stretch your abilities, but still remain possible/realistic. A Realistic goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work. Time-based goals have a target date, so that you have a deadline to focus on and something to work toward.

Goal setting step 3:

Okay, so that one was a little lengthy, but it was the meat and potatoes to your goal setting. Step #3 has two parts, but I didn’t want to separate them. I didn’t want you to think that you could skip #3 and go to #4 or skip #4 and just hang out at #3. So this next part is a two parter you must complete.

Let a friend you trust know what your goals are. Consider having a goal setting party or date. TRUSTING friend is the key word.

The second part, along with writing your goals I believe you need some type of vision board. You can create this with magazine clippings or in a computer program like Pic Monkey or Canva. I have decided to share my 2017 vision board with you below!

While you are setting your goals I want you to remember everyone starts somewhere. If you need a group of women to lean on, I encourage you to join my Facebook group I set up for women just like you! The Busy Woman’s Guide to a Healthy Life is a group I set up for women who are ready for change and ready to link arms with like minded women, ditch excuses, and create a healthy lifestyle that sticks.

If you have health and wellness goals, stay tuned I will be covering why you don’t have to skip carbs and how to skip cardio!

Looking forward to accomplishing our goals this year, girl!

XO, AP