The skill of getting back on track (Holiday Tips #3)

The Holiday season is a challenging time to hit all your targets when it comes to good nutrition, regular exercise, quality sleep, and stress management. You can set your self up to be ahead of your usual January state by practicing the skill of "getting back on track quickly."

Picture an airplane that is flying from Los Angeles to New York. If the pilot takes a flight path that is 2% off course, the plane may miss New York by hundreds of miles. However, if she notices the drift and corrects her course early, the plane will arrive safely on target.

Getting back on track quickly makes it much easier to be successful in the long run.

It's usually not the one missed workout or one night of food indulgence that derails your efforts to stay on track with your healthy lifestyle. Rather, it's missing multiple workouts, indulging over multiple days, or layering together many nights of poor sleep that take you far from your goal.

Three ideas to help you get back on track quickly

1. Plan your indulgence. It's the Holidays. It's okay to splurge a little, you can still get results even if you don't make every perfect choice. Take a moment to choose those times you're willing to let your guard down a bit, and resolve to stay focused at other times.
    
2. Find a Holiday Buddy. Recruit a friend or family member who has goals similar to yours, and offer encouragement and accountability to each other through this challenging season.
    
3. "Win the Moment." If you've drifted off course, first forgive yourself. You're human after all. Now think about something you can do in the next 10 minutes that will help you point in the right direction, and do that thing now.

Going deeper

• The Study the Moment Worksheet was designed to help you see patterns and ideally "win the moment"

Have a wonderful week. We wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Dr. Topher Fox

P.S. If you missed any previous emails, the content is posted weekly here

P.P.S. Below are the pictures from my exam room wall which we are exploring for this email series.