My Crazy Holiday Expectation for Clients
“Stop trying to lose weight. Stop trying so hard to reach your goals.
Just relax. Enjoy the Holidays. Then dial it in in January.
And look, I’m not saying go crazy. I’m just saying stop stressing yourself out about being “perfect” through the end of the year."
I’ve had this conversation with dozens of clients over the past 2 weeks. And today I’m going to have it with you.
First, I want to tell you the number 1 reason I see people get frustrated, quit their fitness plan, and temporarily abandon their goals.
Then I want to lay out the 2 main approaches you can take this Holiday season. Both options are great, you just need to decide which option makes the most sense for you.
So what’s the number 1 reason people get frustrated and quit?
Unmet expectations.
Sounds a lot like relationships right?
Expecting one thing and consistently getting something else is super frustrating. To all of us!
To show just how powerful expectations are, I’ve seen clients losing 0.25-0.5 inches off their waist every month and being super happy about it. That kind of fat loss is definitely progress but not exactly quick progress. But the clients are really happy!
I’ve seen other clients losing 1.5-2 inches off their waist per month and being really frustrated that they aren’t making faster progress. Even though their progress is crazy fast! I’ve even seen these clients quit despite making amazing progress!
Now generally speaking the better/faster results someone gets the more likely they are to be happy with their progress. However, the key here is expectation. If their expectations are in line with their outcome, all is well! If they aren’t, then no matter how great the progress is, the client WILL be unhappy.
Now if we find ourselves in this situation we can either keep doing what we’re doing and be grumpy about the unmet expectations (for some reason, a lot of people like to hangout here! 10/10 would NOT recommend to a friend.) We can change our actions to create a different outcome. OR we can adjust our expectations.
The first option (doing nothing and complaining) is never recommended.
The next 2 options are both very viable options. You just need to decide which of the 2 makes the most sense for your current situation.
So what are the 2 options? I’m glad you asked!!
Option 1: Continue Like Any Other Time of the Year
I have a handful of clients who are choosing this option. Though most are going with option 2.
This really is a great option if you are truly willing to keep things dialed in throughout the Holidays.
With this option, it doesn’t mean you can’t eat a huge Thanksgiving feast or eat plenty of delicious food and cookies on Christmas. It just means that 90%+ of your days you’re going to eat like you normally would all year despite there being cookies at the office, Holidays parties, etc.
This is a great option if you don’t feel much of a need to relax your eating through the Holidays. If you know you won’t feel deprived by turning down cookies, treats, etc. over the next month and a half then choose this option!
This is also a great option if you have a time sensitive goal. Maybe you’re trying to lose weight before a beach trip, a birthday, or some other event.
It’s also a really great option if you know you tend to be an all-or-none individual. These people are generally very content to stay dialed in despite anything going on around them. But they also know as soon as they have 1 cookie, they’ll eat 12. So for this crowd it might be best to stay dialed in through the Holidays.
Option 2: Relax Through the Holidays; Refocus in January
This is the option I’m recommending to the majority of our clients at Steel. And it has been a breath of fresh air to many.
After telling them something along the lines of my quote at the beginning of this blog post, they express feeling very relieved.
So many people feel guilty for indulging some over the Holidays. For eating a few too many Christmas cookies (can you tell I like Christmas cookies??). For not continuing to lose weight at the same rate they were a couple months prior.
But I’m here to tell you IT’S OK! Relax a little.
Note***I don’t mean go hog wild everywhere you go. Have some self-discipline.
But you should enjoy the food. Guilt-Free. Because food is a good gift from God!
Enjoy the food. Keep doing your workouts. Relax your expectations over the Holidays. Just aim to maintain your current weight. (For many of us that would be a huge win compared to past Holiday seasons!) Then in January, once all the festivities are over. Dial it back in.
One more thing...
You want to create a lifestyle change. Right?
Part of that lifestyle would be enjoying Holiday meals and treats with family and friends. Right?
It would be reasonable to expect that a healthy and fit lifestyle will still be affected by different seasons. Right?
A season to relax a bit and not push so hard. Right?
And a season to really dial it in and get after it. Right?
Right!
Know your season and choose accordingly.
So unless you choose Option 1, willingly choose Option 2. And be ok with it. Be happy about it!
Enjoy the next month and a half. Keep working out. Just maintain your weight. And let’s get to it in January.
If you're ready to create a lifestyle change, CLICK HERE and fill out the form. I'll contact you within 24 hours to schedule a zero pressure phone call to see if we're a good fit to work together!
Keep scrolling to see some of the amazing results our clients have seen (and just think, you could be next!)
