Hi friends!
By now, you're just about half-way done with the contest time frame - so a combination of three things are probably happening. One - you're seeing some promising results and changes from your initial two months of hard work... Two - you're really getting sick of keeping your diet (and maybe your activity) under such strict control. And three - you're still having trouble getting started OR you've recently given up b/c you weren't being perfect (let's hope none of you are doing that!). Now, whatever category you fall under, know that there's still time to make a big change... Read on to renew your motivation!
******************************
Do you realize how many of your daily decisions are based on emotion? Emotion can dictate... how you decide to react to your co-workers, how you choose to communicate with your friends/family, how you determine whether your day is productive and positive - or worthless and crappy, how you perceive your self-image, and even how you decide what to eat and/or what new habits you are willing to follow.
It's just a fact of life. Emotions are powerful - and many of us let our emotions decide for us. We blame our nasty moods on our uncontrollable emotions. We refuse to believe that our negative perception of our lives (or ourselves) might actually be skewed, because it's based on emotional over-reaction. And - we make excuses about our poor eating habits, saying that we can't help ourselves... when we're actually letting our emotions choose our food (bad idea!), and essentially setting ourselves up for failure!!
We can't expect to simply lose our vices, typical temptations, and addictions. It's unrealistic to think that we can stop ourselves (and our emotions) from choosing those foods/drinks simply because of willpower alone. And because willpower is sometimes not enough - emotions are sometimes too strong and too persuasive - we have to create a plan! We have to prepare our meals and decide when we will eat them. We have to provide good choices and avoid the temptations. We have to determine a schedule, complete with cheat meals, and stick to it no matter what!
And it's even more important to do this when you're trying to transform your body! Maintenance is a different story - but losing fat... come on, it's essential to have a solid plan!
But even then, a plan is not enough.
The correct mindset is the next piece of the puzzle. You must take emotion out of the eating equation. You must also eliminate emotion from your exercise plan.
Why? Because if you start thinking and analyzing and deciding how you feel about eating a meal or completing a workout, there's the chance you will back out of your plan and make an alternate, unproductive decision. Dieting is NOT fun. It's not easy to consistently eat clean for long periods of time. It's not easy to avoid using food for comfort on difficult days. And for some people, exercising is not super enjoyable. On some days, it absolutely sucks! And that's just the way it is. But you can't let your everyday feelings stop you. You can't let a passing emotion detract you from your goal. Otherwise, you'll never succeed...
So, it is important that you don't think about what you've got to do... Just DO it!
Do what you have to do. Just get it done.
Just do the exercises. Go to the gym without hesitation. There's no other choice. There's no other option. Your plan says exercise at this time... so you will exercise. Get your butt to the gym and just start going through the motions if you have to (and at least put in some effort before the workout is over!).
Just eat the meals you planned to eat. There's no other choice. You didn't bring your favorite foods home, or any other tempting foods - so there's nothing stopping you from eating what you already prepared. If you bring your food to work - that's your meal. Eating out is not an option. Eating anything else is not a choice. Eating more food just out of habit is pointless. Skipping your meals is ridiculous (because it's all right there!).
So, your mantra for this week is: "Don't think, Just Do."
Plan for success. Prepare your food and exercise schedule in advance. Take your meals with you in a cooler - take your gym clothes with you in your bag. Then, don't think about whether you like it or not. Don't think about what you'd rather be eating or what you'd rather be doing instead. JUST DO IT!
You can bring your emotions back after you've transformed. For now, leave them behind.
Just do it - I know you can stick with it!
Here's to your perseverance!
It's just a fact of life. Emotions are powerful - and many of us let our emotions decide for us. We blame our nasty moods on our uncontrollable emotions. We refuse to believe that our negative perception of our lives (or ourselves) might actually be skewed, because it's based on emotional over-reaction. And - we make excuses about our poor eating habits, saying that we can't help ourselves... when we're actually letting our emotions choose our food (bad idea!), and essentially setting ourselves up for failure!!
We can't expect to simply lose our vices, typical temptations, and addictions. It's unrealistic to think that we can stop ourselves (and our emotions) from choosing those foods/drinks simply because of willpower alone. And because willpower is sometimes not enough - emotions are sometimes too strong and too persuasive - we have to create a plan! We have to prepare our meals and decide when we will eat them. We have to provide good choices and avoid the temptations. We have to determine a schedule, complete with cheat meals, and stick to it no matter what!
And it's even more important to do this when you're trying to transform your body! Maintenance is a different story - but losing fat... come on, it's essential to have a solid plan!
But even then, a plan is not enough.
The correct mindset is the next piece of the puzzle. You must take emotion out of the eating equation. You must also eliminate emotion from your exercise plan.
Why? Because if you start thinking and analyzing and deciding how you feel about eating a meal or completing a workout, there's the chance you will back out of your plan and make an alternate, unproductive decision. Dieting is NOT fun. It's not easy to consistently eat clean for long periods of time. It's not easy to avoid using food for comfort on difficult days. And for some people, exercising is not super enjoyable. On some days, it absolutely sucks! And that's just the way it is. But you can't let your everyday feelings stop you. You can't let a passing emotion detract you from your goal. Otherwise, you'll never succeed...
So, it is important that you don't think about what you've got to do... Just DO it!
Do what you have to do. Just get it done.
Just do the exercises. Go to the gym without hesitation. There's no other choice. There's no other option. Your plan says exercise at this time... so you will exercise. Get your butt to the gym and just start going through the motions if you have to (and at least put in some effort before the workout is over!).
Just eat the meals you planned to eat. There's no other choice. You didn't bring your favorite foods home, or any other tempting foods - so there's nothing stopping you from eating what you already prepared. If you bring your food to work - that's your meal. Eating out is not an option. Eating anything else is not a choice. Eating more food just out of habit is pointless. Skipping your meals is ridiculous (because it's all right there!).
So, your mantra for this week is: "Don't think, Just Do."
Plan for success. Prepare your food and exercise schedule in advance. Take your meals with you in a cooler - take your gym clothes with you in your bag. Then, don't think about whether you like it or not. Don't think about what you'd rather be eating or what you'd rather be doing instead. JUST DO IT!
You can bring your emotions back after you've transformed. For now, leave them behind.
Just do it - I know you can stick with it!
Here's to your perseverance!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment