ac·count·a·bil·i·ty
[uh-koun-tuh-bil-i-tee] Show IPA
noun.
- the state of being accountable, liable, or answerable.
- Education . a policy of holding schools and teachers accountable for students’ academic progress by linking such progress with funding for salaries, maintenance, etc.
So how does this relate to fitness, we mention accountability all the time when we say that we cannot complete a workout program, when we can’t get the the gym or when we cannot maintain or nutrition even though we know what we are ingesting is bad for us. So what does Accountability mean? Let’s break it down.
the state of being accountable, liable, or answerable.
- a-ha!! ANSWERABLE!! to who? to me? to my husband? to my kids? Well yes to all, but why?
- We need to be answerable to ourselves because we are the chatterboxes in our head playing mind games on the fact that “oh I ate horribly this weekend and drank too much” Nobody else is telling us that but our own self. So, what do we do about it? We get mad at ourselves, we get down on ourselves and sometimes we continue the pattern because we think, heck what is it worth, I will get started next week, then next week turns into 2, 3 and 4 and then you have completely gotten to a point where you HATE yourself!
- To our husband or wife? Yep, we need to be accountable to them because they have to live with our crazy self!! But you say hey my husband doesn’t support me in this endeavor, he is sitting there drinking a beer and eating chili fries, why do I need to be accountable to him? Well for one you are in this thing together whether you like it or not!! Not that you need to say “hey honey come work out with me you will feel so great” although you can, and are usually disappointed when he says no, you need to because you live in the same household and need to know what each other is doing and why we are doing it. No you may not have the support you would like to have but you can go into your workout knowing that “my spouse knows I am working on myself” there is no question about that. Then chances are, the more you work on yourself, your spouse will eventually join you in your crusade when he/she sees your success. If you didnt stay communicating on this then there may be times of resentment that you want to get your workout done and he or she wants to go out to lunch. If they are aware of your goals ahead of time, that lunch date can usually wait without resentment.
- To our Kids, well YEAH!!! DUH!! This one is pretty self explanatory…they need to know that Mommy or Daddy is working on themselves to be the best person they can be, and if we are the best we can be then our kids see that and want to duplicate what mommy and daddy are doing, being the best! Isnt that what we want?
OK so how do we stay accountable when we lose our motivation?
- keep a daily journal and/or daily post on facebook, but some may think I wont do this people will think I am crazy, trust me when you step out of your comfort zone and do this you are way more inclined to keep up with it because if the world knows then you feel that you have to step up or shut up
- ask our friends to join us. We work really well when we know others are doing the same thing, so ask a friend to join you. If they say No they are not ready at least you may have motivated them to start a program soon.
- Take Before pictures and post them everywhere you can see them daily. This will be a constant reminder to Yep get up off the couch!
- Find something that motivates you, find a dress or a pair of pants you would die to fit in and hang it up where you can see it
- Make working out part of your daily routine. Would you skip brushing your teeth everyday?
- Join a Challenge Group, what is a Challenge group? See Here
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