It’s been a great day so far. I painted my nails, took a shot at waxing my own eyebrows (for the first time – woohoo!), did some other strategic hair removal and a little bit of housework, and now I’m getting ready to grab my things and head off to yoga class in about 20 minutes. Before I get into my sports bra, I wanted to take a second to jot down some thoughts about the rewards system I’m going to build to help me stick with this weight loss plan this time around.
If you’ve been reading Compass & Quill, you’ll know by now that I’m a shoe fanatic. I love them. I obsess about them – especially finding comfortable shoes that are also stylish and hip. Right now I’m thinking that I should set a weight loss goal, and if I can reach that goal and stay at or under that number for a week, I get a new pair of shoes. What do you guys think? Am I being too easy on myself – should my goal be to stay at or under the number for a longer amount of time? Or if I have multiple goals in mind, say a pair of shoes at 155, a new dress at 150, a new pair of jeans at 145, do you think my plan will work (assuming diet and exercise remain my constant)?
I want you guys to be a part of this, too. After I figure out my goal points (I’m thinking every four pounds to give myself something to look forward to), I’ll start picking out a few items that I would love to have, and present them as a poll here on the site. Essentially, you guys will be choosing my reward for me! Sound cool? I think so 🙂
Compass & Quill 
I’m all for rewarding yourself! Despite what you hear, external motivation can be very powerful. After all, who would go to work every day if there was no paycheck? Even if you have the most fabulous job in the world, I doubt that would get a person out of bed every day. My suggestion would be to build a little with your goal-setting, though. Set the first goal small and attainable; then aim a little higher for the next prize. If you are disciplined enough to write as often as you do, you can achieve your weight goal, too.
That’s great advice – thanks! I’m working on putting it all together now, and will definitely use the small-to-larger idea. I think it might be a little more complicated than just weight loss, though. Maybe I’ll have two sets of goals, since there are other things I want to make sure happen – like smaller arms and firmer thighs. Gonna try to get something in place this week. Thanks for your support!