You can mean every word when you tell yourself you are going to become more active.
Then work runs late. It starts raining. You are traveling. The equipment you normally use is unavailable.
Now you are making the decision all over again.
The Non-Negotiable Commitment Sheet helps you make that decision ahead of time. Choose a manageable amount of activity, give it a place in your schedule, and prepare backup plans for the days when life changes your arrangements.
Free printable and fillable PDF. Type in your answers and save your completed copy, or print it and complete it by hand.
Choose something you can keep doing
Your non-negotiable is a specific amount of activity you reasonably expect yourself to complete on the days you choose.
If you don’t know where to start or what to do, start with a daily walk. Walking is a practical, low-impact way to burn energy, and you can adjust the pace and duration to fit your ability. Choose an amount you can reasonably repeat.
If there is something else you already enjoy doing, use it. Maybe you shoot hoops for thirty minutes once in a while. Could you give that activity a regular place in your schedule—perhaps even every day, if that is appropriate for you?
You don’t have to reinvent the wheel here. Start with movement you enjoy, or something simple you are willing to do. Then make it a commitment you can keep.
Sometimes the activity already fits your life
One person I coached cares for a lot of kids. They spend plenty of time jumping on the trampoline, so she chose that as her daily non-negotiable activity.
I loved that choice. It was achievable, sustainable, and something she was already doing to some degree. She could be active with the kids while keeping a commitment to herself.
The change was giving it a specific amount of time and making it a regular commitment. Now she paid attention to how long she participated and made sure she followed through.
That was an activity that fit her circumstances. Your choice should fit your ability and limitations too.
Maybe you’re a medical professional and spend much of your workday on your feet. You’re already getting a lot of steps. That’s fantastic. Those steps count.
Find out how many you typically get, then use that as a starting point for a reasonable daily step goal.
Some days, you might reach that goal just by going to work. Other days, you might spend more time at a desk or have the day off, and a walk after dinner helps you finish.
You don’t need a separate workout to make the movement count. You need a clear target and a plan for reaching it when your normal routine doesn’t get you there.
Test your starting point
Consider your schedule, starting point, physical limitations, and the activities you enjoy enough to repeat.
If you already track your steps, look at an ordinary day before choosing a target. If you are choosing an activity measured in minutes, try your proposed amount before signing yourself up to repeat it.
You are allowed to learn something from that trial.
If the amount is too difficult to sustain, lower it. If it is comfortably manageable, you have somewhere useful to begin. You can build from there.
You do not earn extra credit for choosing a commitment you abandon after three days.
Be clear about what counts
“Move more” leaves you with another decision to make.
“Complete ten minutes of walking after dinner on weekdays” tells you what you agreed to do and when you will do it.
Write down:
- The activity or measurable target.
- The days your commitment applies.
- When and where you normally expect to complete it.
Choose the schedule deliberately. My own agreement applies on weekdays. Yours may be different.
You should be able to look at your commitment at the end of the day and know whether you completed it.
Give yourself three workable plans
Plan A is your normal arrangement. Plan B handles the first likely obstacle. Plan C gives you another appropriate option when both are unavailable.
For example, someone choosing a ten-minute walking commitment might write:
- Plan A: Walk outside after dinner.
- Plan B: If the weather prevents an outdoor walk, walk indoors at a nearby mall.
- Plan C: If leaving home is impractical, complete ten minutes of indoor walking at home.
The location changes. The commitment still has a way to happen.
Your alternatives can involve different activities when appropriate. What matters is deciding in advance what each option involves and when you will use it.
“Figure something out” is not much of a backup plan. Write down something you can actually do.
Prepare for the obstacle you already expect
Most obstacles are less surprising than we pretend.
If darkness regularly prevents your evening walk, plan around daylight. If travel interrupts your routine, identify an option you can use while away. If your indoor backup requires equipment, make sure it is available.
Ask yourself:
What is most likely to interfere, and what can I arrange now to make that easier?
Put your walking shoes where you will see them. Check the mall’s hours. Make room for the equipment you intend to use.
A backup plan becomes useful when you have made it possible to follow.
Understand what you are committing to
A non-negotiable does not require you to ignore illness, push through pain, or disregard medical restrictions. If your activity is inappropriate that day, adjust safely. Your backup plans should respect your limitations too.
It does ask you to be honest about the difference between needing another plan and simply not feeling like following the one you made.
That is why the starting commitment needs to be reasonable. You are building a baseline you can depend on.
Sign it—and put it somewhere useful
Complete the sheet, choose your start date, and sign it.
Keep the printed copy somewhere you will see it before your usual activity time. If you use the fillable version, save your completed copy somewhere easy to find.
The signature records a decision. Following through gives that decision meaning.
If you miss a day, acknowledge it and return at your next planned opportunity. If you repeatedly miss, examine what keeps happening. You may need a more realistic amount, a better time, or a backup plan that fits your circumstances.
Use what you learn to make the commitment workable.
You do not need to wait for a perfect week.
Write down your Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. Make the decision before you need the backup plan.
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