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Today marks the start of Stage 4, also known as your chance to spread the spark! It’s time to emerge from your cocoon, spread your wings and take flight to begin the work and fun of reaching goals in all areas of life. You’ve put forth a good amount of effort to reach this point. This is why you wanted to be fit and healthy in the first place. This is why you identified your core values and your "why." Today is your canvas and it's up to you to paint a beautiful day! Many of the lessons you've learned and structure you've built for yourself in your pursuit of weight loss can be applied to other areas of your life, and we love seeing people strive for greatness in all things. Your health and fitness plus leadership skills that you've acquired up to this point will make it easier than ever to reach other any other goal you set for yourself. Realizing this will help you forever understand the true benefits of being a fit and healthy leader. This means the cycle will reverse! Now the results you get because of your improved health, fitness and ability to lead will serve as a motivator for you to stay on track with your nutrition, fitness and other healthy lifestyle goals. Do you see the magic of this cycle? At first your core values served as a motivator for your health and fitness; now those health and fitness results will serve as a springboard to reach goals in all areas of life. Finally, reaching those goals in all areas of life will serve as a continuing motivator to stay focused on your health and fitness. Everything works together! There are many areas in life you might set new goals around, including:
Sometimes people think that SparkPeople recommendations like focusing on small amounts of consistent fitness and nutrition are "trite." I often share the story of SparkPeople member named Elle to show this is not the case. Elle joined SparkPeople when she was overweight and depressed. She was an author, but none of her writing had been published. After taking small steps on SparkPeople, including hiking in the hills near her home in San Diego, Elle built up her confidence enough to start recording ideas for her next book on her hikes. She finished the book while simultaneously continuing her journey to lose weight, get fit, build her leadership skills and make many friends in the SparkPeople community. With her newfound confidence, Elle self-published her book. After a great reception to the book, Elle received a two-book deal for more than $1 million from a major publisher. Elle spoke at a SparkPeople convention in front of hundreds of members and said, "I never imagined my life would be like this prior to SparkPeople." Of course, money is not the only mark of success, but this story is a good example that being a fit and healthy leader might transform your life in ways you can’t even imagine yet. Activity: Your SparkListChoose 50 to 100 things you’d like to do in your lifetime and write them down. This can include:
The SparkPeople program isn't just a one-and-done deal; this program can be with you for life, helping you achieve things you never thought possible as you become the greatest version of yourself. We'll be here to cheer you on all along the way. |