I’ve heard it time and time again – “I wish”, “I want”, or even worse, “I can’t” when it comes to fitness.
Too often I hear people saying they want to do something with their life, and their fitness, but they “Just can’t make it happen”. My response: Stop wishing you were 5lbs lighter, stop wanting to fit into your favourite skinny jeans, and know that telling yourself you can’t, just ensures that you won’t. It’s self-defeating.
Getting your life, your body, and your fitness exactly where you want it to be, comes from nothing more than telling yourself you can, you will, and this is how you’re going to make it happen. You become your words, so you must speak kindly to yourself. You can pooh pooh on me for saying this, but visualization is key here. Visualizing the life you want, and the body you want, is the first step to getting there. Wanting to be comfortable in your own skin and lose a couple pounds is one thing, but knowing exactly what you want, how it will look, how it will feel, and what you need to do to get there, is what makes the difference between someone that takes charge of change, and someone that keeps on riding down the same road wishes. Saying you want to lose a couple pounds, but then in the same sentence saying you’re not willing to give up that daily double double is not going to help get you there. Saying you want to workout more but you don’t have time, and instead sitting down and watching the biggest loser, is not going to help make you fit. Sorry, sad but true.
You only live once people, and unfortunately dreaming and wishing your way through life is not going to get your where you want to be. You need to speak positive thoughts to yourself, and visualize where you want to be, who you want to be, and how you’re going to make that happen. Here are some tips on where to start:
Write a letter to your future self. Whether this is 5, 10, or 15 years from now, write down exactly how you want your life to look at that point in time. Include details here, as well as actions and lifestyle that will ensure this happens. Keep this somewhere you’re not going to lose it. This is a form of visualization.
Speak kindly to yourself. Say things to yourself that are positive….even if you don’t quite believe it at the beginning. The mind is a muscle, and the more you work the positive muscle, the stronger it becomes. Same thing goes for negative thoughts though too, so tune into the kinds of things you say to yourself and make sure it’s all good stuff.
Make a visualization “board”. Now this doesn’t have to be a massive board you have taped to your kitchen wall so everyone sees it. That’s kind of corny. It can be as simple as something you put together on your personal computer and keep on your desktop, to some pictures you keep in your phone, or even a regular sized piece of paper you keep folded up in your wallet or purse. Include some pictures that symbolize what you want, some inspirational words/sayings, as well as something symbolizing the course of action it will take to get there. Just make sure it is somewhere you will see it regularly.
If you continue along with the same routine, day in and day out, with the same thought patterns, along with no real focus – your life and body won’t change. Wanting and wishing is not going to get you where you want to be. Its belief, words, and actions that encourage change. Change takes discipline and work, so don’t fall into gimmick pitfalls like fast weight-loss bull shit. Allow some time to make things happen, because it’s our habits that make us who we are. Not short stints of change that you cannot maintain.
I was at a Heart concert this week watching these older chicks rock the shit out of that stage. Being a musician myself, it made me think “I want to be rocking out when I’m pushing 60″. I really looked up to them, and it inspired me to want to write a letter to my 55 year old self. I don’t want to live my life with complete routine, I don’t want to become boring, I don’t want to ever be a sheep that follows the heard, and I want to remain an individual with passion for life and the things I love to do. Now all I have to do is write that letter to my 55 year old self to start making that happen! Why don’t you do the same my friends? Maybe even share it with a loved one, just to get it “out there”.
Showing you the difference between liking and loving your body,
ashley dale roy
