Which is better? To get fit, feel good in your clothes and have good mental health consistently, or to spend 4 months/6 months getting fit and feeling good in your clothes, only to stop when you get there?
This sounds like a really silly question but it’s a very common theme in many people, and it’s why the term yo-yo is used so much.
The only way to stop yo-yoing with your health is to stop stopping and starting. You can’t eat well and then stop, workout and then stop, drink enough water and then stop, if you want to be healthy. And how long are you deciding to be healthy for?
Do you want to be healthy for a few months of the year and then not? Do you want to look your best for an event but then before and after you don’t care? Do you want that one snap shot in time of you feeling great but hating everything that goes after it?
Consistency is much easier when you get there. If you DON’T DIET, but eat healthy and workout, with the right type of training, you’ll stay fitting into your clothes, and feeling great all the time, with no overhaul. You’ll have got there by consistent small steps. And the wonderful news about consistent small steps, is that you’ll feel wonderful throughout the whole process, experiencing feel good feelings that you may not have had in years. Peace, calm and clarity from within you. No deprivation. Only adding positive things to your life.
With consistent small steps you don’t see huge changes right away. How could you? How can you undo all the results from your unhealthy actions in two weeks? Give exercise and healthy eating a break! They are amazing but they take a bit of time!
You find the discipline to workout by focusing on what the benefits are from exercise or what will happen if you don’t workout.
We are all driven to move towards pleasure or away from pain. Which are you? Are you driven to exercise by fear of what will happen if you don’t or are you more likely to be driven by what will happen when you do? Pain or pleasure, which is the dominant force driving you?
To stay disciplined to workout, you need to remind yourself frequently of all the reasons why you workout or all the reasons why you’re afraid not to:
Here’s a list of the most common reasons why people from a pleasure perspective work out:
- Feel better
- Fit great in their clothes
- Strong bones
- Lean muscle building
- High metabolism
- Shiny hair and nails
- Improved skin
- Burn calories at rest
- Feel and be healthy
- Good cardio fitness
- Strong heart and lungs
- Extended healthy life
Here’s a list of the most common reasons why people from a moving away from pain perspective work out:
- Fear of getting older
- Worried about not being around for their kids
- Afraid of getting sick
- Afraid of weight gain
- Worried how you will feel if you don’t work out
- Scared of the future
- You don’t want a slow metabolism
- You don’t want an out of shape body
- You don’t want to be out of breathe when you’re out and about
You first need to figure out which one drives you more, and then slowly start to turn your moving away, towards a moving towards pleasure. Moving away is great at the start, but over time, to stay motivated, when you have gotten fit and healthy, moving towards pleasure will help keep you disciplined and consistent.
Reminding yourself daily, before your workout and during of WHY you workout, is the best way to stay disciplined to workout.
I hope you find this helpful. You can download my free 30 day Fast track to #FEELGOOD Program here
To your success,
Jessica Cooke
