Mums share their amazing motivational board ideas

My pledge and goal target 1 are based on the 12 Week Challenge, as are the monthly plans and weigh ins/measurements. Can’t wait to start! We’ve got this ladies”

Bec Gardner

“Motivation board. A couple things to add on tomorrow to really finish it off ready for Monday!”

Cicily Goodwin

“I’m super excited! I reached my goal weight of 75kgs 3.5 years ago, and now I’m ready to take it to the next level and lose a total of half my body weight!

This is a huge milestone for me, but I know this 12 Week Challenge is the perfect opportunity to push myself and get there. My motivation board is full of my own transformations, to remind myself I can achieve anything I put my mind to! I’m aiming to lose roughly 10kgs to get my down to that 64kg mark, I’ll cross out the boxes as I lose each 1kg, to give me a visual of my progress as I go.”

How to create a weight loss motivation board

1. Visualise yourself at your goal weight

Rhonda Thredgold’s motivation boardStart off by visualising yourself at your goal weight. Ask yourself:

• How does it feel?
• Who are you doing this for and why?
• What makes you happy?
• What will your life be like when you have achieved your goals?

This will put you a positive frame of mind for this activity.

2. Look for motivation boards that inspire you

• There is no right or wrong way to create your motivation board.
• Your weight loss motivation board should ‘speak to you’. It should be a reflection of your own personality and your own goals.
• How much or how little you include on your board is entirely up to you.

3. Gather images of things that makes you happy

Think about what gets you motivated and happy and start gathering these items. This could include:

• Pictures of your kids, family, wedding day, you at your goal weight.
• Inspirational quotes.

A picture of someone of similar size, whose body you admire. (No point pinning a picture of a catwalk model if you are 5ft tall).

What’s more, if you are 6 feet tall and have jet black hair then a picture of Kylie Minogue is probably not the best choice. Be realistic! Choose role models who look healthy and whose bodies or elements of their body, you could achieve)

• Calendar or countdown chart.
• Health or fitness goals (e.g. aim to run 5kms, aim to do 30 push ups in 1 minute).
• List or illustrations of exercises you wish to do every day.
• Pictures of a dress you wish to fit into (you could also hang an item of clothing up next to your board).
• Reward or mini rewards for when you reach your weight milestones or goal weight.

4. Gather your supplies

• Choose what material you want for your board and where you might like to hang it as this will determine your size.  Popular options for boards are coloured cardboard, cork, hard board or whiteboards. If you want a board that you can easily update, a whiteboard or cork board is a good choice.
• Think about which accessories you want to pretty up your board. These could include pegs, stickers, pins, ribbons, mini bunting, stickers, coloured pens, crafting paper etc. Spotlight, Kmart or the Reject shop are great resources for accessories.

5. Get creative and design your board

Put on some music, surround yourself with images that make you happy and get creative with glue, scissors, thumb nails. Remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect. You can add to it and take away from it at any time.

6. Hang your motivation board somewhere prominent

• There is no point having your weight loss motivation board tucked away where you can’t see it.
• Hang it somewhere prominent.
• It is a constant reminder of how far you have come and how close you are to achieving your goal.
• This visual reminder will help keep you focused.

7. Track your progress

• Record your progress along the way.
• Pegs are a fun visual reference to to indicate kgs lost. Include two lines on your board. The top line will have the number of pegs representing the kgs that you aim to lose (see above). The bottom line will indicate how many kgs you have lost. Other mums have created jars with gems in them to track their progress. Find a method that suits you.
• Cross out each day that you complete your exercises.
• Give yourself mini (non food related) rewards for meeting milestones. This could be a night at the movies, getting your nails done, buying some new trainers.

Now you should be well on your way to reaching your goals!!!

Thanks to all the wonderful mums at the Healthy Mummy community for sharing their motivation boards with us.