So you often hear New Years resolutions and people coming into the gym with a goal of losing weight, getting healthier, being more toned, feeling better.

But what is their REAL reason WHY?

Honestly, it really isn’t to look better. Or even to get healthier most of the time.

It is to be more CONFIDENT!

I mean why do you want to look better? Is it really just for the sake of looking better? Or is it because you want to FEEL better about yourself – be more CONFIDENT in how you look?

Do you really want to get healthier? Or do you want to be MORE CONFIDENT in you health – know that when you wake up you will have the energy to tackle the day and won’t constantly be falling ill?

Yup…Underlying just about every health and fitness goal is a person’s real WHY – CONFIDENCE.

And while I would say this is definitely the case for women, I think it is also true for men.

Even high level athletes train to have more confidence. Yes, they train to get stronger…But they really train because they want to be CONFIDENT that they can win.

A healthy lifestyle is all about confidence no matter what terms you actually use to describe your goal.

That is why having a measurable goal, which is broken down into SHORT-TERM goals, is so important.

A big part of confidence is seeing progress – seeing SUCCESS…no matter how small.

When we accomplish something, there is definitely a feeling of pride, a feeling of CONFIDENCE.

I know that is why I make a daily task list. I love the feeling of success and accomplishment that I get when I cross something off of my to-do list!

Even if it is something small. Honestly, I usually even start with the easiest and smallest task for the day because it is the least daunting and seems quick and painless. AND it gets the momentum going because once I’ve finished something and see the list start to get smaller, I feel even more motivated to continue.

Usually getting the momentum going is the hardest part, which is why it is so important to start with something small. Easy to accomplish tasks present a lower barrier to entry…aka they make it seem less intimidating to get started on a difficult task.

So while your long-term goal may be something that will take months or even years to accomplish (and may seem incredibly daunting at the moment), your short-term goals should be things you can accomplish daily or even weekly.

You NEED to have easy to accomplish short-term goals, especially at the beginning because those quick and easy victories will get the momentum rolling.

And when you start seeing success, no matter how small, your confidence will build. And as your confidence builds, you will perform better, feel better, and even look better.

So if you want to accomplish all those more “superficial” goals like losing weight, getting more toned, being healthier, you first have to target the real reason you want all of those things – CONFIDENCE!

P.S. By superficial I don’t mean not important…your health is VERY important and does drive people to eat better or workout, but if you build your confidence, those other goals don’t seem near as intimidating or out of reach!