New Years Resolutions

                                                  New Year’s Resolutions

     How many of you start out the New Year with the intention to start anew in some area of your life? You may ask yourself, if you wholeheartedly want  to experience change, then what keeps you from achieving what you have set your heart on? You have tried to make this “said” change in the past only to experience some success, but reverted back to the old habits that took you down this road to begin with. You may wonder why you should even bother to take this step because you are tired of trying and feeling unsupported, discouraged, and or hopeless. Certain changes can seem insurmountable and it is often challenging and overwhelming to figure out where to start. Just thinking about it can make you want to give up, yet your only alternative is to continue to do what is familiar,  and keeps you feeling defeated, day after day, year after year. As a Health and Wellness coach, I typically first meet with clients when they are at their wit’s end and have tried everything else, without consistent success. They are often at a critical life juncture when they are ready to take action and experience real results, but don’t want their efforts to seem fruitless. As a coach, I support my clients in setting realistic, attainable goals in an area of their life they are wanting the most support with or are feeling the most discouraged about. Breaking the next step down into bite sized pieces makes the next step more attainable. Supporting my clients in  making incremental changes over time is how I set my them up for success. Drastic change over a short period of time, may get you some results more quickly, but it does not help you create new healthier habits that will turn into the long-term, sustainable behavior and lifestyle changes that you are wanting to create. Change must take place in your brain in order to support change. The way this happens is to repeat a new thought, habit, or pattern of behavior for at least a 6 month period of time. It takes at least 90 days to break a habit; hence stop the feedback loop of unsupportive or self-destructive behavior, by not feeding that loop, and 6 months to create new patterns or new pathways in your brain. This is why it is so important to have someone who has experience with behavior change, such as a health and wellness coach to walk with you as a “guide on the side” as you are creating these new patterns, because this is when you are most vulnerable to “relapsing” into your old ways. Without a coach or support person, it is easy to keep going with the familiar pattern when you are vulnerable, rather that see and reflect on the progress that you have made and remember why you are making this change in the first place. If you could have done this for yourself by yourself, then you would have already. Having someone you choose to hold you accountable, that is unconditional,  and supportive, can make all the difference during this pivotal point in the cycle of change. In my experience with successful change, it is most helpful when you have someone you trust, support and unconditionally cheer you on, while you reach the 90 day threshold, then the 6 month mark where the new patterns begin to take hold. As a health and wellness coach, I support you in reaching your goals, by working with you to create sustainable lifestyle and behavior patterns, that you are ready to experience. A health coach reminds you what your original goals were, why are are on this path, reflects back to you the progress you are making, and supports you in creating realistic, attainable goals and sustainable lifestyle changes. If you are ready to embark on a journey of creating sustainable change, you may want to consider investing in a health and wellness coach to support a sense of wellness, inner peace, resilience, joy, and overall success you are wanting to experience this year! Are you ready to take the next step toward living the life you were made for? Check in with yourself first and if you feel a yes or a yes, but , then ask yourself, what are you waiting for? Schedule your free 30 minute initial consultation with me michelepedersen66@gmail.com or 410-549-7711, to get this new year seed intention planted. I’m looking forward to meeting you!