Around the health and fitness world, people often focus mainly on the physical aspects of getting healthy. What to eat, how to workout, etc., but one of the KEY pieces (if not the MOST CRITICAL one) of your journey is mental.
Take a moment and take stock of your mindset.
- How do you think about yourself?
- How do you talk to yourself? Would you EVER speak to your child or best friend the way you talk to or about yourself?
- What’s going through your mind as you workout? As you prepare to workout?
One of the ways you can work on training your brain is through Personal Development. Now, this is way more than “self-help” books, so don’t stop reading yet! There are a TON of great resources out there, from books, to free podcasts, to thousands of 18 minute TED talks on nearly every topic under the sun.
I’m a voracious reader, and I just started reading “The School of Greatness” by Lewis Howes (which one of my personal role models and mentors Chalene Johnson recommended). This quote summed up what I’ve felt for a long time…
We have to use LOVE to harness our dreams and make lasting changes in our lives. If we are coming from a negative place and trying to change this thing we hate or that thing hate – be it about our bodies or our lives – then the commitment to that change will always have a negative tone and be weaker.
If, however, we resolve to improve something and approach the challenge with mindfulness, joy and love then the commitment is better supported and working towards improvement will feel positive.
Try these two statements on for size and see how they feel:
- Ugh, I hate the way my belly jiggles! That’s it! No more sugar! 2 hours of cardio a day! I can’t stand this, gotta change, gotta change, gotta change.
- Man, I love my kids. They are super important to me and make me happy. I want to be able to keep up with not only my kids, but THEIR kids when it’s time to be a Grandma! I’m going to start making changes now to be healthier so I can do just that.
Isn’t it funny how the key to all the good things in life is Love? Hmm…
Leave a Reply