Maybe your goals should not have a definitive end point….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"article":"I've been thinking about this post all week.\u00a0 This past weekend, I started back into my stretching routine.\u00a0 In the past 5 years I've gone through 2 cycles of very dedicated stretching to take myself from only being able to touch the top of my ankles to being able to touch my toes on a forward bend.\u00a0 But unfortunately, I stopped doing my routine each time as well and regressed each time back to were I started.\u00a0 I try not to beat myself up too much thinking about how flexible I would be had I kept up with this over the past 5 years, but it is still something I massively regret not sticking with.\r\n\r\nIn the past, I got started because I realized how much time of my life I have wasted just doom scrolling on my phone.\u00a0 I asked myself what benefits I had recevied by doing that, and the answer was.....not much.\u00a0 I told myself that I could either give my time to random people online that mean absolutely nothing to me, or I could give that time to myself.\u00a0 I'm sorry to say that for the past couple years, the damn phone won.\u00a0 Once again I've gotten into that mindset to begin my nightly stretching routine, and even after one week it's amazing how much better I feel, both physically and mentally.\r\n\r\nWhile I should have started this over a year ago, I've started now.\u00a0 Although the start time has been significantly delayed, I clearly know how to get myself started.\u00a0 This issue has always been, how do I keep myself from stopping?\u00a0 It really only dawned on me in the last couple of weeks.\u00a0 In the past, my goal was always to be able to do a forward bend and touch my toes.\u00a0 Each time I started my dedication, I stopped once I was able to touch my toes.\u00a0 The PROBLEM was that I actually hit my goal!\u00a0 While that is of course the point of setting goals, I never had a goal to stretch myself beyond that (pun intended).\r\n\r\nSo what have I changed on my third go around?\u00a0 I still have a goal of not only touching my toes, but of also being able to get into a full plow position (lying on your back with feet over your head touching the mat).\u00a0 However, that is not THE goal.\u00a0 The goal is now long term health.\u00a0 The goal is maintaining physical well being through flexibility.\u00a0 The goal in to maintain a lifestyle that keeps me in the shape that I desire to be.\u00a0 So now when I am able to touch my toes, I am going to view it as I did achieving a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu.\u00a0 It is a great accomplishment, but it is just another milestone in the journey to continue to improve, day after day.\r\n\r\nHopefully, you have set some goals for youself this year.\u00a0 If you haven't, figure that out now!\u00a0 If you have, think about the end game.\u00a0 If the end game is something that causes you to stop the behaviors that you enacted on your way to that goal, maybe you need to change the end game.\u00a0 If it's a weight loss goal, don't just chase a number and quit the behaviors that got you there, you will regress.\u00a0 Consider the number as just a marker, and continue the behaviors that got you there.\u00a0 If the goal is purchasing something that you have longed for, don't stop the behaviors that generated the income to allow you to make that purchase.\u00a0 Keep that financial discipline as it will benefit you for the rest of your life.\r\n\r\nYou WILL see me touching my toes during warmups by the summer.\u00a0 You will also see me touching them this time next year.\u00a0 Focus on the behaviors and not the specific reward, and let me know how things worked out at the end of the year.","featured_image":"","featured_image_id":"","featured_article":""},"categories":[],"class_list":["post-283","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n