It's January again, the prime time of the year for good intentions and health club memberships.  In the stores in the US, aisles full of organizing paraphenalia appear: plastic containers, baskets, silverware trays.  Visions of the perfect home and the perfect body go dancing through our heads.  We read the articles about 10 steps to the organized life or Thinner Thighs in Thirty Days (remember that book?)  We begin our year full of hope and enthusiam but what happens to us?  The Workout-a-holics stand in lines for the machines but with the warm assurance that in 6 weeks or less the crowds will thin down to the few and faithful with maybe a half dozen additions.  The plastic containers become places to move our junk to a new location in the house.  Why do our good intentions crash and burn after a few weeks?

1)We try to eat the elephant whole!  How do you eat an elephant?  All together now--one bite at  a time! I make a resolution to lose 50 pounds.  I need to lose them but the very act of putting it down intimidates the heck out of me.  It's such a huge undertaking.  It involves juggling schedules, exercising self control, changing recipies, calculating portions.  Just thinking about it makes me want to reach for a MARS bar.  What if, instead of a big blanket resolution, I break it down into smaller "bites"?  This week, I could concentrate on one part of the task and then work on another part next week.  So this week is, "I will ask myself if I'm hungry before  I put a bite in my mouth." or " I will write down what I eat and when so I can figure  out what trips me up."  I feel much more confident that I can manage that.

2)  We choke on "Should have"-- The weight is there.  That's reality.  It's been there, gradually creeping up over 4 pregnancies.  I should have exercised more, eaten better--whatever.  No amount of beating myself up over the reality will help me make one step forward and do something about the weight.  Even those of us who didn't grow up in the Catholic faith seem to have the idea that we need  to do penance for our mistakes before we allow ourselves to move forward.  LIE!  That didn't come from the Bible, folks.  Sacrifices to atone for sin was taken care of completely with the death of Christ. Done, over.  Be sorry, ask forgiveness, ask God for help not to make the same mistake, ACCEPT forgiveness and move on.  Get back into the task at hand.  Getting mired in should  will strangle you every time.

 3) Our Focus is Out of Whack--  Do this exercise with me. Put your finger about 8 inches from your  face.  Look at your finger.  How does everything else look?  Now look beyond your finger. What does  your finger look like?  Whatever you focus on, you see clearly and the surroundings become blurry.  If you focus on your failures you'll lose track of your successes and become  depressed.  If you focus on your successes, your  failures will blur and you'll be encouraged.  Make notes of what you accomplish--whether or  not is has to do with your resolution.  At the end of the day, look at the  list--not at the mile long to do list that you haven't managed to get to.  You did do something today.  You did accomplish something.  Be proud of it.  Baby steps still get you where you're going.  Don't forget that life is not a sprint, it's a marathon and no one is timing you.

4) We forget the Why--When I'm looking at the homemade cookies, I forget why exactly I made the resolution or  I forget when I'm depressed and lonely and think that eating will make me feel better.  If I write down the reasons I want to get in shape and stick them to my refrigerator, it snaps my focus back where it belongs.  Some people put fat pictures or thin pictures up.  Those  don't motivate me--frankly they depress me. But when I look at that list, I feel new resolve rush through me.   I want to play outside  with my kids and not run out of energy.  I want to be proud of myself when I look at a photo.  I want to go on adventures without worrying about my body failing me.  I want to grow old with my husband rather than have an early heart attack.  When I weigh that list against the chocolate--no contest.

5)  We don't enjoy and record the process--ENJOY?  Allow yourself to enjoy the little steps  forward.  Whether it's clothes that start to bag or just getting  to the end of the day without slipping up.  Record every step and reward yourself every week at least.  The reward doesn't  have to be expensive.  A long bubble bath, a walk in the moonlight with your spouse, an hour alone to enjoy a novel you've been longing to read.   Life is all about the process.  The reward is at the end and how tragic if you waited to be happy until then.

 Good luck and God Bless!