One of the things that I work on with clients is developing a customized wellness plan. A customized plan will create a guide, as well as action steps, for setting goals, and establishing and tracking new habits.
The first step in creating this type of plan is beginning with an assessment of where you are now to determine the areas you want to focus on. There are a variety of assessments available for this purpose, and you can do this by self-assessment or with the help of a coach or your physician.
What should it include? You will want to consider your physical, mental and spiritual being, as well as your environment, your relationships, finances, and professional well-being. A wellness wheel can be used to rate yourself on a 1-10 scale, 1 being the lowest.
You’ll want to set your goals down on paper, and you may want to keep track of your progress in a journal dedicated to this effort.
When creating your plan, you will need to assess each area of your life to determine what your goals are. Keep in mind that you can create a comprehensive plan that addresses your total wellness goals, or you can create a plan for one area of your life that you want to focus on such as self-care or exercise. It’s your plan so create it in a way that works best for you.
You will also want to use SMART goals: Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound. SMART goals will help you to determine what you want to accomplish and by when. A goal of “I want to lose a few pounds,” is vague and offers no way of knowing when you have reached it. “I want to lose 1 pound a week for the next 20 weeks, for a total of 20 pounds by August 1st,” is clear, definite and gives you a timeframe that you intend to accomplish it by.
Here is an example of a focused plan:
Stress Management
Goal: To include time for self-care, relaxation and downtime on a regular basis.
- Make sure to spend an afternoon or evening with my partner and do something fun at least once a week.
- Do 20-30 minutes of cardio weekly – walking, jogging or biking.
- Have regular downtime by scheduling an afternoon or evening for myself every week.
- Meditate at least 5 minutes daily using the Calm app.
- Pay attention to creating white space on my calendar, so that I don’t over-extend.
I will block out these times or plans on my calendar each week.
As you can see, the example includes the Category (Stress Management); the Goal: to include time for self-care, relaxation and downtime on a regular basis; and Action Steps: How the action steps will be implemented.
If you want to be successful at making changes, it’s important to write out your plan and your goals. Writing your goals down requires that you get clear on what you want to accomplish and visually serves to bring them to life, whereas simply thinking about goals is less likely to affect what you actually do.
An additional resource that can be valuable is having an accountability partner. An accountability partner can be any support person that you choose – a friend, partner or coach – that will support you in remaining on track with your goals and navigating obstacles that arise.
I would love to hear from you, so write a comment below or Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Evergreen-Life-and-Wellness.