How I'm Losing Weight Using Rhythm

It’s the end of February, so how are your New Year’s Resolutions going? Too soon to ask? This is the first year when I made a resolution and actually stuck with it, and using Rhythm software has helped! Can you guess what my resolution is? If you couldn't tell by the title, it's probably like most people's - to lose weight. Well, not only that, it’s to live healthier. My birthday is in December, and something about this year made me ask myself, “What are you doing to yourself?” I took the time between my birthday and the New Year to make a plan and began executing on January 1, 2016.

I’ve made some really poor dietary choices in the past few years and have not made the time to exercise. I used to be a lean machine, believe it or not; I just fell off the horse a while back. So I decided this year, it’s time to get back on that horse and it’s time to be a better, healthier version of me.

A few years ago, I did P90X and had amazing results. So, I decided to do it again. Since each workout is at least 60 minutes, I knew that I would have to make this a priority in my life. If friends wanted to grab a drink or dinner after work, I’d have to say no because I need to go home to work out (I am not a morning person). Patrick teaches us to say yes to one (or a very few) priorities, and no to everything else. I had to practice this one Friday night when I got a text from a friend asking what my plans were that night. I wrote her back, “I’m working out.” And I did, and I ate a healthy meal, went to bed early, and got up Saturday morning to do my Saturday workout. Was it hard to say no to a fun Friday night? Yes! Was it worth it? Yes!

Where does using Rhythm software come in? At Rhythm Systems, we have a group called “Sharpen the Saw," based on one of Covey’s 7 Habits. I created an individual priority in Rhythm called “Do P90X Program” (I could probably spice it up - any suggestions?). Of course, I added Red-Yellow-Green status criteria for my priority. Green is doing all 6 days of workouts. Red is doing 4 days. SuperGreen is doing X-Stretch on the 7th day instead of resting/doing nothing. We talk about it in our Weekly Meeting which helps keep me accountable. There was one week when I had to status Yellow, and I felt really embarrassed. I do not want to ever status below Green again!

Since working out is a daily accountability, I took my workout plan to a spreadsheet. My spreadsheet is organized by month (each month is a tab), and I have every day of the month across the top row. Then I have a row for the workout to do on that date, a row for marking the workout complete, a row for recording my weight (I weigh myself once a month, but sometimes I cheat because my progress is so exciting), and a row for notes (i.e. Super Bowl Sunday, swapped out Monday workout because I won’t be able to work out on Monday). I Red-Yellow-Green my daily progress, too. Green is “Did it!”, Yellow is “Did it, but…”, and Red is “Didn’t do it.” When I status Yellow or Red, I write in my notes what happened (aka, my excuse) and what I plan on doing to get back on track. It is so satisfying to mark the cell Green after a workout! I also colored the dates Yellow where there is something planned that might make working out and eating healthy a challenge, like a monthly team meeting or a vacation, just to keep in mind it’s going to be hard to say no to stay on track, but I have to do it! This spreadsheet has my workouts planned for every day through May. P90X will end in March, and I have Insanity on deck for April - wish me luck!

While using Rhythm methods and software to keep me accountable, plus talking about my progress with my co-workers, friends, and family (and now with you), I’ve lost 9 pounds so far and it's only week six as I'm writing this! It’s not too late to restart your New Year’s Resolutions and to use Rhythm to make a plan and execute on it. You can do it! 

Photo Credit: iStock by Getty Images