This morning I had a planned run in my schedule.  The kind of run I have done many times in the past without bother and the kind that I usually enjoy.  This morning my alarm went off at 6:30am and I ignored it 2 or 3 times before dragging myself out of bed without questioning why I was getting up so early on a perfectly good Sunday.  I got changed, grabbed a banana, left my sleeping family behind and headed into town to where I planned to start my run.  I drove almost on auto-pilot, eating my banana, noticing what a lovely day it was but also how warm it was already. We were in for another hot summer’s day.

I pulled into the car park near the trail where I run, and the car park was buzzing with people, friends and families launching their ski boats into the Murray River for a morning of aquatic fun.  I hopped out of my car, turned on my Garmin and waited for the beep to confirm I had satellite connection and set off on my run.  It was about this time that my brain kicked in and started asking me “what the hell are you doing?”, “it’s Sunday morning for crying out loud”, “the others are home in bed, sleeping in, and then getting up to enjoy a relaxed Sunday breakfast”, “hmmm coffee.. I NEED coffee”.

Apparently my motivation had up and left and didn’t feel like joining me on this gorgeous sunny morning.

This internal whining carried on for about 20 minutes “10km is a long way you know”, “how HOT is it already!”, “no one would really care if we just went home you know”, “why are you even bothering to do this?”, “why don’t we just give up on this exercise malarkey”, “have I mentioned how HOT it is?”, “ooooohhh I am so sweaty already”, “OMG is that a red belly black snake?” (yes it really was).  I just kept ignoring this voice, trying not to argue with it while it was in full flight, hoping it would wear itself out and go away and tried to distract it occasionally by taking in the sights and sounds of one of my favourite places to run.

Eventually my inner whiner was quiet enough for me to get a word in edgewise, and I calmly started to remind her exactly why we were doing this.  I reminded her of our wellness vision,  our vision for our healthiest life.   I reminded her of the goals we had set to lead us towards that vision, and that this was just one small teeny-tiny step in the bigger picture of our grand plan. Sure we have goals to be a faster and stronger runner, but we also have the vision to be a positive role model for our daughter, and soon to be born niece/nephew.  We want to be ahead of the game when Mother Nature starts knocking on our door with the gift of menopause, and to counteract the many sedentary hours we spend in our job.

My inner whiner went quiet for a while, and then started to see the light.  She looked back, just a little to remind us both of just how far we had come, even since last year. She reminded us that although it was hot, sweaty and early on a Sunday morning, that we were well and truly taking steps towards our version of our healthiest life.  We ran in silence for a little while, listening to the cicadas (and the ski boats further up the river), watching the pelicans come and go from the lagoon, appreciating the patches of shade and wafts of a slight breeze and wishing it was slightly cooler.

Without a vision, and without clear goals to get us there, it would have been incredibly easy to go AWOL looking for our motivation.  Unfortunately motivation is only one small part behind making a change, and eventually it will go into hiding.  Maybe for a day, or a week, or even longer.  By having a clear understanding of where we want to head and how to get there, we are more easily able to make consistent (sometimes small) steps in the direction of our vision while we wait for our motivation to come back.

This is where Wellness Coaching can help.  Together we capture and develop your life vision, that is, what your ultimate healthiest life looks like, but also explore the obstacles you may face and the strengths you possess to over come them.  Together we then set 2 – 3 three month SMART goals that will take the steps towards achieving your vision.  Each week together we look at 2 – 3 SMART steps you can take towards achieving each three month goal, keeping in mind your obstacles and your strengths to overcome them.  It is 100% personalised based on you, your vision, your circumstances and your strengths.  This wholistic approach to goal setting provides accountability, order, clarity, challenge, small steps and ultimately SUCCESS.

In the coming weeks I will be writing more posts on setting and achieving goals through Wellness Coaching. In the mean time if you would like more information about Wellness Coaching and / or the coaching services Life Spark Wellness provides, please send me an email at joanne@lifesparkwellness.com.au or give me a call on 0477 505 531.