Goals That Set You Up to WIN

Earlier this month, I booked myself into a 7:30 am spin class.

At the time, I was feeling great. Energized, motivated, fresh off a class I loved. I had to book ahead because my favourite class fills up fast.

Then today, the morning of the class arrived.

My alarm went off at 6:20am.

But overnight, my body had shifted. I have just entered the luteal phase of my cycle. My ovulation window passed within the last 48 hours. And this morning?

My body felt like lead.

Getting out of bed for spin class felt like torture. Not just difficult, impossible. It felt cruel to force myself. So I didn’t. I canceled the class, lost my money, and chalked it up as a failure.

But here’s the truth: I didn’t fail. I set myself up to fail.

I track my cycle every month. I know my patterns. While my cycle is still fairly regular, I never know exactly how I’ll feel. But I do know that my energy and mood shifts can hit me hard. Some months, they’re borderline debilitating.

So why did I set a goal that ignored all of that?

And it makes me wonder how often are we doing this in other areas of our life?

Setting myself up to win might involve making a commitment to myself today that I won’t schedule in classes during a time of my cycle where there’s a high chance I won’t be able to do it. That instead I will schedule in soft and gentle yin type movement on those days that nourish and comfort and protect me. It seems obvious, but I guess I’m still learning.

Be kind be kind be kind to yourself. Yes push yourself out of your comfort zone. Yes hold yourself accountable. But don’t set yourself up to fail.

With love,

J x