Start an Accountability Group to Meet Your Health Goals
Julie Bitely
| 3 min read
If you keep trying – and failing – to meet specific health-related goals, it might be time to ask for a little help from your friends.
Whether you want to lose weight, make more meals at home, increase your fruit and veggie consumption or work out more, you probably have some like-minded pals that are reaching for the same goals.
Starting an accountability group can not only help you stick to your plan, it can help your friends and loved ones get healthier right alongside you. Here are our best tips for running a successful accountability group.
- Choose a platform. Decide where and how you want to run your group. Social media is an ideal platform to run an accountability group because members can freely share their successes and struggles with support and encouragement from the group. You can create a private Facebook group or invite people to join you on the site you most prefer. Email is another option if your friends aren’t big on social sites.
- Pick your people. Determine how big you want your group to be. Are you more comfortable in small gatherings or are you a “more the merrier” type of host? There are pros and cons both ways, but it really depends on your style. As you invite friends to join you, consider the tone you want the group to have. Since the group will primarily be a space to cheer each other on, it might serve you well to invite the more positive side of your friends’ group to start with.
- Set goals. It helps if your group has goals to focus on. There are a variety of ways to set measurable goals using technology. Participants can log their eating using an app such as MyFitnessPal, while fitness trackers can help measure steps and workouts. Pinterest is bursting with 30-day fitness and eating challenges. Set your goals as a group and keep each other accountable. If there’s no general consensus, take the lead and declare your personal intentions, inviting the other members of the group to join you.
- Maintain the momentum. As the organizer of the group, you’ll want to post at least once per day. Search online for inspirational memes to share and check in with how you’re meeting your personal goals. Ask questions that encourage participation by the other members. If many of the people in your group live nearby, you could also set up in-person events such as a group walk or meal-prep night to build the team camaraderie.
Have you ever participated in an accountability group? What worked for you and what didn’t? Share your best tips in the comments.
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Photo credit: Fit Approach
