[Julz’s Journal] How To Plan The Perfect Week

Would you like to know how to plan the perfect week, so that you can achieve your goals without stress and overwhelm?

Every Sunday, without fail, I plan my week ahead. The reason I never miss this exercise, is because when I started to build this habit into my life, just like most other habits I have built in, I was inconsistent in the beginning. Some weeks I did it, and others I didn’t.

I soon noticed the positive correlation between the weeks I did my planning session on a Sunday, and how well my week went. The weeks I had a good plan, I had a good week, more times than not!

This habit, and the format that I am going to show you today on how to plan your perfect week, is something that I recommend you build in now while you are losing weight on total food replacement and something that you continue doing for as long as you want to have great weeks in your life! AKA forever!

Today, I want to share with you a very basic way to get started with how to plan the perfect week. This is basically what I do every week. It takes me less than 20 minutes, and it really does set you up for a great week.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE WEEKLY PLANNER

The first section of the planner is to record your weight loss or weight maintenance when you get to that stage.

• You want to write out what you weigh today
• How much you have lost in the last week
• And what you want to lose this week

Having a written record of your weight loss progress is important as it holds you accountable, and it feels great to see that number getting smaller and smaller. Hold on to your record sheets so that you can see your progress.

This is the only section of the weekly planner related to weight loss, and as a dieter I think this part is important for us to keep filling in AFTER we finish total food replacement. This is because what gets measured improves, and if you monitor your weight, rather than just hoping for the best, then you have a much better chance of maintaining.

Highlight memories from the previous week:

Before we start planning a new week, it is important to not only reflect on the the week that has just been but to capture any special moments.

Here are a few examples of highlights that you could re-call.

• Wearing jeans a size smaller
• Receiving a bunch of flowers
• Feeling good when you got ready to go out
• Spending time with your kids
• Going for a massage
• Getting a nice phone call from someone
• Receiving a compliment
• Having a lovely heart to heart chat with a friend over a coffee

What meant something to you this week?  What special moments do you want to capture? What comments and words of encouragement made your heart sing? What non-scale victories made you do a mini fist pump?  What did you tick off your bucket list? When did you feel happiest this week?

Write down all the small moments and the big highlights. There are always more than you think! Take each day of the week and revisit it. What happened that day? Anything that made you feel good, write it down.

My current biggest problems in life are:

Every week I write out my biggest problems. Let’s face it, as long as we are human and alive we are going to have problems. So having problems is a good thing. When you write your problems down, you take ownership of them. When you take ownership of them, you will be able to resolve them, and make way for new exciting better problems!  You are never going to get to the stage where you have no problems, just laugh at that fact, and start to enjoy solving problems!

The cause of most problems are:

• Self sabotage on the diet
• Tiredness
• Health & fitness problems
• Work problems
• Money problems
• Relationship problems
• Problems with home or car
• Lack of productivity
• Overwhelm
• Confidence issues

There are 2 types of problems in the world.

1. Problems you can control.
2. Problems you cannot control.

The more you focus on the things that you can control, the happier you will be. So if you have a lot of problems on your list that are totally outside of your control, then I urge you to focus only on the problems that you can fix. Put so much time and energy into fixing your own problems that you have no time to think about other people’s problems or issues.

When you write out your list of problems, take some time to reflect on what steps you could take to make even the smallest of improvement over the next week.

For example:-

• Self sabotage on the diet – sign up for personal coaching with the new you plan
• Tiredness – go to bed at 9pm every night with the lights out, tv off and smart phone off.
• Health & fitness problems – go for a walk with the dog every evening at 5:30pm for 30m minutes
• Work problems – ask to speak to your manager, sign up for a new course, look for a new job
• Money problems – organise bank and credit card statements, sign up for a credit report, sell stuff on Gumtree/Ebay
• Relationship problems – focus on what matters, show love, organise a date night, have a heart to heart with no blame

Take ownership of your problems and take baby steps to solve them.  That is all you need to do.

You might find that the same problem can be on your list for quite a while. But if you are taking steps towards solving it, the problem will be solved.

Also remember that sometimes all you need to do to solve a problem is change how you look at it.  A simple change in perspective is the fastest way to solve a lot of problems!

The things I love about my life right now:

It is now time to celebrate everything that is amazing in your life, and all the things, people and experiences that make your life great. Most weeks this section is the same for me, with the odd difference, but it is good to keep appreciating your loved ones and the basic things in your life that give you a sense of love and security.

In this section I write a little bit about my husband, my children, my home, my friends, my parents, my brothers, my dog, my team in work, my customers etc.

Ideas I have to improve my life, health & happiness:

Now you have just reviewed the highlights of your last week, your biggest problems and the things and people you are most grateful for, this is the perfect time to ask yourself – “How can I be happier and healthier?”  Just write out what ideas you have.

• Could you spend more time with the people you love?
• Would you benefit from not being on Facebook so much?
• Can you start walking in the evening with your partner/kids/friends/dog so that you do not self sabotage your diet in the evenings?
• Do you have an accountability partner?
• How can you recreate your happiest moments of the week?
• What steps can you take to solve your problems?
• How can you create routines and habits that would give you a stronger happier healthier foundation?

My top goals for next week:

Now it is time to decide what is most important to you to achieve in the next week.  Write out 3-7 things that will make you happier and healthier; things that will help you to connect with what and who matters most to you, and things that will help you to solve your biggest problems.

For example:

1. Be 100% on plan for 7 days no matter what!
2. Start a new online course to learn a new skill set
3. Spend 1 hour every evening connecting with my children with no Facebook or TV
4. Go for a walk every morning before work with the dog
5. Go on a date night with my partner
6. Improve my work routine to get my reports in on time
7. Get a good bed time routine in place

My affirmation for the week ahead:

To finish your weekly planning session write out an affirmation for your week.  Sometimes mine is just one short sentence. Other weeks it is a long paragraph. Just write something that empowers you, words that make you believe in yourself and in your dreams, words that will encourage you when you are having a hard time. Read your affirmation every time you look at your sheet this week. Be your own best friend, be your own cheerleader! Tell yourself the words you need to hear to live the life you deserve.

Review your weekly planner everyday:

After you complete your weekly planner, you will feel great. You will feel ready for a good week and know what is most important to you.

The best thing you can do is review your planner page every morning.  

– Just read your top goals and make sure you are scheduling time to achieve them into your calendar for the week.
– Every morning read or even better say aloud your affirmation to yourself.
– Look at your list of problems and be determined to take action to take baby steps to resolve them.

Make sure you tick off your goals as you achieve them, and then next Sunday review your sheet, and then complete a new one. Repeat this process every single week and keep hold of your sheets. It will be great for you to look back on. Just think how much you can achieve with this simple 20 minute process every Sunday. Do it for the rest of the year, and I know you will not regret it!

HAVE A GREAT WEEK 🙂

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE WEEKLY PLANNER

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Start Your TFR Journey Today!

Getting started is the first step in your journey to a brand new you! So that you can fully understand how our plan works, our Get Started page was designed specifically for people new to the plan.

Head over to our site where you’ll find tonnes of important information including how our plan works. Plus learn the science behind it, get loads of top tips, information on our meals, and read real customer testimonials.

You can visit our Get Started page by clicking here.