At 9 PM, it looks like Iʻll be 2,000 steps shy of my daily goal. I was in a similar situation yesterday, and I chose to close out the day at the gym. It had been a long day. I worked both jobs then rushed to two different meetings at Lucyʻs school, one right after the other. Finally had dinner at home just after 8 PM, headed for a walk on the treadmill at around 9, and made it home at 10, in time to shower and hit the sack by 11.
But that was yesterday, and thatʻs not the only goal I have for the week.
Itʻs entirely possible to have the kind of busy day that doesnʻt allow you to be home with your family for 12 hours and check all the To Dos off your list. I almost did it yesterday. But itʻs unsustainable if youʻre also interested in maintaining healthy relationships with your spouse and children and if you want to make time for other endeavors, like creating art.
So whatʻs my takeaway? Meeting a goal is not the only measure of success. If I choose not to make my step count so that I can meet my bedtime, am I a failure? Do I push myself and make myself crazy-- in essence, sacrificing my mental health-- just so that I can wallow in the success of completing all my fitness goals? I donʻt think so.
Iʻm beginning to learn that goals inform action. They motivate and inspire. I want to take at least 10,000 steps in a day, and I know that ticking off boxes in my bullet journal feels good. If I feel lazy or hot, I still choose to maybe make an extra circuit around the room just to put in a few extra steps. When my activity tracker prompts me to get up and move, I want to obey!
And yet I must ask myself: Did I do better today? Did I make different, better choices? The answer to both those questions for today, anyway, is YES. I moved when I normally wouldnʻt have, and I made an effort when I really didnʻt want to. So while completing all my daily tasks feels doubly good (1x for good for health and 2x for ticking that To Do box), Iʻm training myself to be gentle about self-criticism, to be smart about how to achieve my goals, and to recognize the importance of the journey. The point of these goals, after all, isnʻt to make a certain step or squat count, itʻs about getting more active and building better, healthier habits.
Today, then, is a success.
