Take time out for self care to achieve your goals

If you have set yourself a goal that you want to achieve then it means it is important to you; by not achieving your goals you are letting yourself down – but by not taking time out for self-care you will be less likely to achieve the goals that you set yourself.

Perhaps you have one primary goal that you want to achieve, or maybe you have a long list of smaller goals to help you achieve the ‘big goal’? However you want to plan your goals, you need to ensure that right at the top of the list you put ‘self-care’. If you don’t look after yourself, you’re going to struggle to achieve anything without a detrimental impact on your health.

If you are sat reading this feeling exhausted, worn out, busy and overwhelmed then you need to take time out for self-care more than you realise. You are probably thinking right now that you don’t have time for that – but when you take the time out to look after your health and wellbeing, you will give yourself the strength you need to achieve any goal that you set yourself.

Let’s start with the really simple stuff, making sure you eat the right things and do enough exercise to keep your mind and body refreshed, clear and energised. For example, make sure you eat whole foods and natural foods such as fruits and vegetables, but also cut back on those quick and easy processed foods which increase the salt and sugar in your diet and can you leave you feeling sluggish and unmotivated in body and mind.

While it’s nice to eat out every now and again (I LOVE eating out), if you eat at home you have more control over the size of your portions and the ingredients that go into your food, which can help you eat healthier. If you eat the wrong foods, you will notice you have low energy which will not help you reach those goals, and you will also be more at risk of serious health conditions so taking the time to look at your diet could help you lead a happier and healthier lifestyle. You can't be good all the time (life's just too short to always worry about what you eat), but a healthy diet most of the time is sustainable and you will enjoy meals out and special treats all the more when you do decide to indulge yourself.

You need to make sure you drink at least 6-8 glasses of water a day to keep you hydrated; this will help keep you focused but will also help to control your heart rate and food digestion. Yes, I know that water's boring - I struggle with this one too, but try adding some slices of lemon and lime to make it taste a bit more interesting, or even heat it up and drink it warm with a spoonful of natural honey stirred in. I don't always drink as much water as I should and I regret it by mid-afternoon when my head starts thumping! If you suffer from headaches too, drinking more water throughout the day might just help - it definitely helps me.

I know it’s not always easy, but you also need to stay active and try to incorporate more physical activity into your daily routine. Just small changes like standing up while you’re on the phone, marching on the spot while the kettle boils, going for a walk on your lunch break, walking to work or parking the car at the back of the car park, make all the difference. Ideally, you want to have a variety of activities in your weekly schedule that you can do for around 30 minutes three times a week to help improve and maintain your overall fitness. This is my biggest downfall as the thought of exercise makes me come out in a cold sweat (I was the child at school who always managed to wriggle out of P.E. lessons), but I do enjoy a lovely brisk walk :)

Outside eating healthy and exercising you need to consider other ways of looking after yourself such as consciously looking on the bright side of life and thinking positively, and making sure you go to bed and get up at reasonable times to give your body proper time to restore and rejuvenate.

Everybody deals with stress in different ways, but try to find calming and relaxation techniques that enable you to deal with and manage stress in a way that is good for you. On this note, make sure you put time in the diary for YOU, whether it is an hour here and there to spend with friends or on your own in a coffee shop, a weekend away for a change of scenery or even just a long soak in a big bubble bath at the end of a busy day.

To help you achieve your goals, you also need to find a way to delegate, and you need to delegate wisely. Look at the tasks that match your strengths, and you enjoy; then look at ways of delegating or outsourcing those tasks that you don’t enjoy, don’t have the time for or that fall outside your skillset. It could be anything from bookkeeping, cleaning your house, doing your admin or washing your car. Your time is valuable so be sure to spend it wisely.

If you often find yourself at a loss for words when someone asks what your hobbies are or what you do in your spare time then perhaps you need to look for meaningful activities and creative pastimes to fill your leisure time as they will help you relax and switch off. It could be anything from reading to swimming, painting to dancing and more. Find something that you enjoy. It is also important that you stay connected with close family and friends; put time in your diary for seeing those close to you, and you’ll feel much better for it.

By taking time to look after yourself, you will be able to reduce the stress in your life and accomplish more enabling you to achieve those goals with ease. Remember to treat yourself with compassion and kindness; there is only one you in the world so look after yourself!

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