CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

Challenge of the Week:

Make Your Own Lunch this Week

We can all get really busy at work and get into the bad habit of running out to eat and grabbing your lunch.

You might even have a regular place that you go to, but secretly know that it’s not the best food you can be eating.

But, what else can you do?  You don’t have any food and you need to eat!

So…this week’s Challenge of the week is to:

PACK YOUR OWN LUNCH every day this week!

Not only will it save you a LOT of money from not eating out, but you will know EXACTLY what is in the food you are eating.

You’ll even be amazed at how much extra energy you feel because you won’t be weighed down by oils or heavy carbs that are all too often found at restaurants.

Here are a couple of steps to make this Challenge Successful:

1.  PLAN your week out in advance.  (This doesn’t have to take long, but sit down and actually write it out.)

2.  Go grocery shopping as soon as you can to get these items.  Don’t leave it up to the universe to magically put the food in your fridge!  Set yourself up for success and do the prep work.

3.  If you can’t pack your lunch the morning you leave for work, make sure to pack it up the night before, so you can grab it and go!

Here are a few great Brown Bag lunch ideas:

• Salad with sliced turkey (dressing on the side)
• Left-overs from dinner the night before
• Greek Yogurt with a piece of fruit and fresh cut veggies
• Lettuce Wrap with sliced veggies & meat

AND….if you’re looking for something a little more fancy, you can check out Martha Stuart’s article of 50 Brown Bag Lunches to give you a few new ideas 

Check it out here: http://www.marthastewart.com/275227/brown-bag-lunches

That’s it!  Are you up for this Week’s Challenge!? 

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

Challenge of the Week: Committing to Your Goal

Set a goal & COMMIT to it. 

Being clear about your goal is critically important to be able to achieve something you WANT.

It’s important to take control of the direction of your life and to live your life ON PURPOSE, and not just let life “happen” to you.

If you don’t, you might wake up in 10 years and wonder how you got there!

Your Challenge of the week is:

Define one of your goals and COMMIT to achieving it. 

No matter how big or small your goal is, if it doesn’t CHALLENGE you, it doesn’t CHANGE you.

Here are a few things that are important to define when setting your new goal:

1.  They have to be S.M.A.R.T. Goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely.) and write it down.

2.  Write down WHY this goal is so important to you.  When things become challenging to you, your WHY will push you through these tougher periods.  If you don’t have a good enough WHY, then you need to choose another goal that is IMPORTANT to you.

3.  Create an action plan! List out EXACTLY what you are going to do in order to achieve you goal.  Are you going to work out 3 times a week at 5am?  Great- now block it off in your schedule

  Be as clear and as specific as you can.

4.  Imagine how you are going to FEEL once you have accomplished your goal.  Write it down.  (this is a really important step- so don’t skip it!)

5.  Share it with someone.  A friend, family member, co-worker or whoever!  Have this person help you to be accountable for your actions.

Are you ready to get started?

What goal that YOU are going to set for yourself this week?

Share it with me or with your friends & family!

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

Challenge of the Week: Step OUT of Your Comfort Zone

Have you ever heard the phrase “Life begins one step outside of your Comfort Zone?”

To accomplish something worth-while, it will most likely require you to push yourself into areas where you are unfamiliar and uncomfortable.

Usually, the more uncomfortable it makes you, the bigger the payoff.

The funny thing is, that MOST people have the same EXACT fears as you do.  

BUT…it’s always the people that challenge themselves BEYOND their fear that become successful.

Instead of looking at fear as a huge obstacle that gets in your way, embrace it.

Whatever it is in your life that is holding you back, no matter how big or small it may seem, challenge yourself to break through the imaginary walls of your comfort zone.

Don’t let life just “happen” to you.  

You HAVE the ability to CREATE your life the way you want it. 

Taking on new challenges and pushing yourself to reach new levels has a EVERYTHING to do with your confidence in yourself and your abilities.

When you’re feeling good, you want to take on the world. 

If you’re not eating a relatively healthy diet and exercising regularly, then this would be step #1.

To be able to feel good and have the energy to live the life that YOU want to live, then these two things are non-negotiables.

To let ANYTHING get in the way of stopping you from living the life you want is truly a shame.

Whether it’s speaking in front of a group, making a phone call you’ve been wanting to make, mending a relationship, or starting a new career, no matter how big or how small it may be…..

You only live once- let’s step it up and step OUT of your comfort zone.

And…there is NO better time to start than NOW.

Your challenge this week is to do something EVERY DAY this week that is outside of your comfort zone (no matter how large or small it may be!)

I GUARANTEE you will be glad you did it. 

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

Challenge of the Week: It’s YOUR Time, Spend it Wisely.

I read an article that really inspired me the other day…  The article is called “The Busy Trap” by Tim Krieder, and I have to admit that I’m guilty of it occasionally.

The first paragraph reeled me in:

“It’s become the default response when you ask anyone how they’re doing: “Busy!” “So busy.” “Crazy busy.” It is, pretty obviously, a boast disguised as a complaint. And the stock response is a kind of congratulation: “That’s a good problem to have,” or “Better than the opposite.”

It’s important to remember that it’s OK to do NOTHING sometimes. (I have to remind myself of this sometimes, too!)

“The space and quiet that idleness provides is a necessary condition for standing back from life and seeing it whole, for making unexpected connections and waiting for the wild summer lightning strikes of inspiration — it is, paradoxically, necessary to getting any work done.”

So…after reading this article, my challenge of the week for YOU, is to REALLY analyze everything you are doing.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• Is what I am doing really necessary and I am doing it efficiently, or I am just being “busy”?
• Is it moving me forward in a personal or professional way?
• Does this really make me happy?

If you answered NO to any of those questions, then you may want think twice about keeping it on your schedule or even outsourcing the task if possible.

Now, we can’t ALWAYS be doing everything we want every minute of the day, but we can be more aware of how we are spending our time.

Once we actually become AWARE of how we spend our time, we can make a CHOICE on HOW we spend it.

I would HIGHLY recommend reading the original article:      http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

If you’re not too busy, make sure to respond if YOU are committed to this week’s CHALLENGE!!!!

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

Challenge of the Week: Find your “Instead”

This week’s Challenge of the Week is a little bit different.  In fact, it’s going to be different for EVERY person who takes on this challenge.

The reason for that is that EACH OF US HAVE DIFFERENT WEAKNESSES. 

AND…it’s OK to have weaknesses (after all, we are only human).

We just have to recognize what they are and be able to handle them when we feel vulnerable.

This week, your challenge is to find your INSTEAD.  

 “INSTEAD” being the key word.  Instead of trying to STOP a bad habit, you should replace it with a HEALTHIER option instead of trying to get rid of it all together.

Trying to stop something will only make you focus on what you can’t have.

BUT, by trading it in for a better option, you will feel much better about the transition.

So….the challenge of the week THIS WEEK, is to

#1.  Identify ONE of your “not-so-great” habits or weaknesses in your diet that you want to change.

#2.  List out (actually WRITE them down) 2 ways you are going to plan for success.

#3.  Throw away, give away, or donate your “Weakness” item.

#4.  Go to the store and buy your “INSTEAD” item!

Remember…you HAVE to make a change in your BEHAVIOR if you want to see a change in your BODY.

Try this and let me know how it goes this week!

Let me know what YOUR weakness is & what your “INSTEAD” by responding back to me.