Focusing on the finish line can actually move you farther away from your goals.
Imagine you’re about to run a marathon.
You walk up to the starting line …
And all you can think about is the finish line.
26.2 miles.
That’s a loooooong way to go.
It feels insurmountable.
How the hell am I going to run 26 freaking miles?
This is known as goal gap awareness
When you become abundantly aware that the distance between where you are and where you want to be is quite large.
It almost feels impossible.
We know from psychology literature that becoming aware of that gap can actually be demotivating.
It can increase the likelihood that you’ll go in the opposite direction.
Once you’re aware of the goal gap, you may feel like, why even bother?
I can’t run 26.2 miles … why even take that first step?
That’s the same thought process if you have a larger weight loss goal.
If you want to lose 40, 50, 100 pounds …
Focusing on the finish line or end goal puts your attention on the goal gap.
It’ll feel insurmountable.
Which it isn’t. But, your perspective and mindset is everything. So, if it feels that way … you’ll treat it that way.
Just like running a marathon … it’s pretty difficult to cross the finish line if you never take the first step.
All the crazy mo’ fo’s out there that run insanely long distances say the same thing …
They get present. They focus on the moment, their surroundings, the here and now.
They break up the distances into smaller chunks that feel doable.
The more they place their attention on the finish line … the more it hurts. The more it feels out of reach.
The same mindset is required for your fitness goals.
You can’t control how fast it’ll happen. You can’t control the outcome.
Focus on what you CAN control
You can control your attention. You can control what you do today that will eventually move you forward.
Focus on the process. Break it up into small chunks. You don’t have 50 pounds to lose … you just have 5 to lose.
Then 5 more.
Then 5 more.
Remember that your attention matters.
Place it where it counts.
Right here, right now.
Take just one step today.
Then, repeat that process every day.
Some days you’ll take a step or two backwards.
That’s ok.
It’s all part of the process.
You just want to take more steps forward than back and you’ll continue to move in the right direction and eventually get to where you want to go.
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