Accountability

Everything that I have accomplished had some accountability involved. Even writing this blog post every day for 12 weeks is me being accountable to the promise that I made to you dear reader, Julie my Journey to Health partner, and Stan at the Chronicle-Tribune who had the brilliant idea to have the Great Weight Off Community Challenge. Would you miss it if I skipped a day? Probably not. If I didn't say I was going to blog and only promised it to myself, would I blog when I didn't feel like it? No! I know I would't because I told myself I wanted to blog at least once a week on my other blog. I didn't say it to anyone else, and I see it has already been two weeks since I wrote anything there. I want to. I intend to, but I haven't because there was no accountability.

The same thing applies when we make a promise to eat healthy, exercise regularly, and lose weight. Did we tell someone else? Is someone waiting for us at the gym and we feel we will let them down if we don't show up? Do you have a coach that is expecting your weekly weight and measurements? It makes a difference! According to a Brigham Young achievement study, those who commit to someone else and commit to sharing their progress at regular intervals increase their chance of reaching their goal 95%!

A common theme in many of the Challenges I have participated in is accountability. We have a Facebook group where we check in daily and let our fellow challengers know that we worked out, that we are on track with our diet and achieving our goals. The more engaged you are in the Challenge, the more accountability you will feel which will help you achieve your weight loss and wellness goals.

If you can find an accountability partner that's even better. You can workout together and/or call each other to make sure you are staying on track or when you feel that you are about to give in to a craving. I've done it before and it works! Even the process of calling or texting breaks the focus on the food. It really helps to know someone is supporting you too.

Do you want this to be the last time you "start over'? Do you really want to reach your weight and wellness goals? Make massive accountability part of your strategy!

Kathy