Recently, I’ve started to look around the web for more wellness blogs. I was pleasantly surprised to find people willing to blog about their success stories. It has been great to read about lifestyle changes in diet and exercise. Now, I know that there are millions of people working hard every day to make changes in their lives. I know that many of us are starting and maintaining healthy lifestyles.
What I forgot, is how inspiring it is to hear others’ stories.
That inspiration is the reason I have been this industry for all these years. The Progress that my clients make is what inspires me to continue. I want to see and hear about more! You can do the following to help spread the inspiration:
- Tell me about how well your routine is going.
- Share your weight loss stats: starting and current weight.
- Show those thinking about getting started, that it will be worth it!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Cycles
Life is made up of a series of cycles. Wellness, as it is part of life, can also be a series of cycles. You’ve heard the term “vicious cycle”, as in “My weight continues to increase as the vicious cycle continues”. We will continue to use weight as an example as we have all been in the following situation:
I didn’t go exercise, so I felt tired today. I was tired, so I had less self-control and ate too much at lunch. Work was stressful, so I ate a candy bar to help me feel better. I actually felt more sluggish after the candy bar and started to regret eating it. Now that I am feeling down on myself because of my eating today, it is hard for me to focus on work. The work I am doing is taking me longer and I am making mistakes because I am struggling to focus. When the day is finally over, I didn’t get as much done as I wanted to, my mood is down and my self-esteem is lower than it was yesterday. When the alarm goes off in the morning, I think to myself: “I am too tired to get up and go like I want to”, and…the cycle continues.
This is the downward spiral. Action leads to feelings which lead to reaction, but everything is based on the negative. We are upset because we aren’t getting it done and now we aren’t getting done because we are upset. Unfortunately for most of us, the spiral has been downward for a long time. That does make it a challenge to reverse, but it is possible and it doesn’t have to be as difficult as you think.
That’s right, just as the cycle can take you on a downward spiral, it can take you on an upward spiral as well. Think about it. Just the concept of a cycle makes it easier to look at. We can picture the spiral moving in a gradual downward direction as our actions (or lack of action) lead to continually less desirable results. The key word here is gradual. You have been gradually moving downward. Just as the cycle can gradually move downward, it can also move gradually upward.
The key is to think about the fact that you got here through that gradual process. Whatever the issue, weight, stress or smoking, you have developed habits over time and the result followed over that same period of time. Barring very rare circumstances, things do not change overnight. Nothing changes (good or bad) in the blink of an eye. We only see change in the cycles. Either we are going down or coming up.
Now that we can look at the gradual movement of the cycle, we can decide which way we want our spiral to go. You can continue the actions that have brought things down, or you can change and bring things back up. It is entirely up to you.
Granted, you may need support to get started and some more along the way, but once the decision is made, it can be done. We help our coaching clients to realize that the cycle can not only be stopped, but it can be reversed. Often that is the biggest step in making changes: realizing that it can be done.
Ideas for follow up:
We would like to hear about your success stories in reversing your cycle. What did you do to turn the downward spiral around and get it moving upward?
Having trouble?
Get ideas and examples from others that have been there by posting a question under comments or emailing the ‘coach’ inbox.
You can learn how to change the direction of your cycle. You can work with your own health coach and see the positive results just as hundreds of others have already.
I didn’t go exercise, so I felt tired today. I was tired, so I had less self-control and ate too much at lunch. Work was stressful, so I ate a candy bar to help me feel better. I actually felt more sluggish after the candy bar and started to regret eating it. Now that I am feeling down on myself because of my eating today, it is hard for me to focus on work. The work I am doing is taking me longer and I am making mistakes because I am struggling to focus. When the day is finally over, I didn’t get as much done as I wanted to, my mood is down and my self-esteem is lower than it was yesterday. When the alarm goes off in the morning, I think to myself: “I am too tired to get up and go like I want to”, and…the cycle continues.
This is the downward spiral. Action leads to feelings which lead to reaction, but everything is based on the negative. We are upset because we aren’t getting it done and now we aren’t getting done because we are upset. Unfortunately for most of us, the spiral has been downward for a long time. That does make it a challenge to reverse, but it is possible and it doesn’t have to be as difficult as you think.
That’s right, just as the cycle can take you on a downward spiral, it can take you on an upward spiral as well. Think about it. Just the concept of a cycle makes it easier to look at. We can picture the spiral moving in a gradual downward direction as our actions (or lack of action) lead to continually less desirable results. The key word here is gradual. You have been gradually moving downward. Just as the cycle can gradually move downward, it can also move gradually upward.
The key is to think about the fact that you got here through that gradual process. Whatever the issue, weight, stress or smoking, you have developed habits over time and the result followed over that same period of time. Barring very rare circumstances, things do not change overnight. Nothing changes (good or bad) in the blink of an eye. We only see change in the cycles. Either we are going down or coming up.
Now that we can look at the gradual movement of the cycle, we can decide which way we want our spiral to go. You can continue the actions that have brought things down, or you can change and bring things back up. It is entirely up to you.
Granted, you may need support to get started and some more along the way, but once the decision is made, it can be done. We help our coaching clients to realize that the cycle can not only be stopped, but it can be reversed. Often that is the biggest step in making changes: realizing that it can be done.
Ideas for follow up:
We would like to hear about your success stories in reversing your cycle. What did you do to turn the downward spiral around and get it moving upward?
Having trouble?
Get ideas and examples from others that have been there by posting a question under comments or emailing the ‘coach’ inbox.
You can learn how to change the direction of your cycle. You can work with your own health coach and see the positive results just as hundreds of others have already.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Addiction vs. Habit
We have all heard the latest news: Smoking is bad for your health. This information has not been a secret. You don’t have to go around pointing it out. We already know. The strange part is that smokers know this too. That is why I hear phrases like, “I know I should quit” and “I want to be healthier, so I will quit”. Yet, many of these people are still smoking.
Here is another newsflash for you: cigarettes are addicting. Nicotine is an addictive substance that makes it very difficult to quit using it. Again, we all know this. For this reason we have products and programs to help people quit smoking.
So, if we all know it’s bad for us why do we keep doing it? We know it’s addictive, so why do we start in the first place? That is still a mystery to me. I have heard many stories and reasons for picking up cigarettes, but I am still curious. If you are a smoker, please send your comments to coach@byrdwellnessconcepts.com and enlighten us. We would like to hear your take on why you started and why you continue to smoke.
While there are many reasons to start smoking, there are even more reasons to stop. This is easier said than done, however. I mentioned the products and programs that are available to people ready to quit. These are very effective for many people. Others just don’t work. Why is this? It is because of habit.
There is a difference between habit and addiction. Addiction is the body physically depending on a substance to bring a desired effect. Habit is something that we have trained ourselves to do. Smoking becomes part of your life, not just because of the nicotine, but also because of the habits you have formed. On a typical day, you have made cigarettes a part of your life to the point where you do it without even thinking about it.
This is why it is so difficult to quit. Anyone can put them down for a few days and say they “quit”. But as soon as they start smoking again, they are smokers and are not considered to have “quit”. Studies show that the nicotine is no longer in your system after just a few days, therefore, the physical addiction only lasts that long.
It is not enough to simply quit smoking. You have to change your habits too. It may not be easy, but if you truly want to quit, you can. It takes discipline, but you can do it. If you truly want to quit, you will. With your health coach in our program you will not only quit, but we help you replace the habits of smoking. The only way to be a non-smoker is to develop non-smoking habits. It does’t come automatically, but your coach helps you set goals and supports you through the challenges. Step by step you will not only quit smoking. You will be a non-smoker.
Here is another newsflash for you: cigarettes are addicting. Nicotine is an addictive substance that makes it very difficult to quit using it. Again, we all know this. For this reason we have products and programs to help people quit smoking.
So, if we all know it’s bad for us why do we keep doing it? We know it’s addictive, so why do we start in the first place? That is still a mystery to me. I have heard many stories and reasons for picking up cigarettes, but I am still curious. If you are a smoker, please send your comments to coach@byrdwellnessconcepts.com and enlighten us. We would like to hear your take on why you started and why you continue to smoke.
While there are many reasons to start smoking, there are even more reasons to stop. This is easier said than done, however. I mentioned the products and programs that are available to people ready to quit. These are very effective for many people. Others just don’t work. Why is this? It is because of habit.
There is a difference between habit and addiction. Addiction is the body physically depending on a substance to bring a desired effect. Habit is something that we have trained ourselves to do. Smoking becomes part of your life, not just because of the nicotine, but also because of the habits you have formed. On a typical day, you have made cigarettes a part of your life to the point where you do it without even thinking about it.
This is why it is so difficult to quit. Anyone can put them down for a few days and say they “quit”. But as soon as they start smoking again, they are smokers and are not considered to have “quit”. Studies show that the nicotine is no longer in your system after just a few days, therefore, the physical addiction only lasts that long.
It is not enough to simply quit smoking. You have to change your habits too. It may not be easy, but if you truly want to quit, you can. It takes discipline, but you can do it. If you truly want to quit, you will. With your health coach in our program you will not only quit, but we help you replace the habits of smoking. The only way to be a non-smoker is to develop non-smoking habits. It does’t come automatically, but your coach helps you set goals and supports you through the challenges. Step by step you will not only quit smoking. You will be a non-smoker.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Commitment
Commitment is a word we hear in many contexts. The context that we will discuss today is you, as in commitment to yourself. We often commit to relationships- “I am committed to my husband or wife.” We also commit to dates on our calendars- “I would love to come, but I have a prior commitment.” We even commit to entertainment events- “I’ve got tickets to the show or game, so we have to leave by 5.”
These are all important to varying degrees in lives of most people. We have all made statements similar to those examples at one point or another. For this reason, I don’t doubt our ability to commit. I simply question the areas in which we commit to, or more importantly, the areas in which we do not commit to.
The biggest area we could all use some work on is committing to ourselves. I’ve heard it time and time again: “I can’t go because I have a meeting.” Or “I will be there, here is my RSVP.” Commitments are made all day every day. The problem I see is us committing to ourselves. I don’t often hear, “I will be late to the meeting because it starts during my workout time.” Or “I can’t help now, but will call you as soon as I return from my break.”
We have become so focused on the urgent, that the important is…well, no longer as important. So what happens to less urgent items? They get put on the later-list, or get completely forgotten. But some of these items ARE important. They were important when we set out to do them before and they are important even as we do not do them.
When it comes to living healthy, this is our biggest problem. It’s not that we don’t want to do healthy things or that we want to suffer illness and fatigue. We simply don’t commit to ourselves in order to do what is important. We are too busy focusing on the urgent. But the biggest problem with that pattern is that someone else is deciding what is urgent. Someone else is deciding what you need to do now regardless of the importance that it plays in your life. Some else is deciding that these issues must be taken care of before the things that you consider to be important.
While this is a reality for many of us, it does not have to be the only way. Granted we all have responsibilities that take on urgency and we must commit to. Whether it is work, family or friends, there are many obligations that we all have to commit to. There is nothing wrong with this, but it is also important to put ourselves on the list of commitments. If we don’t, things are very difficult.
You cannot improve health or change habits without committing to yourself. Only when you commit to you can you set and reach goals that will take you to your desired destination. I use the example of the trip:
In order to get to California, I have to do a few things. The very first thing is to pick a destination. San Francisco is where I want to go. Now I have to pick a date. When do I want to go? September 15th, I will go to San Francisco. Now that I know where and when I want to go, I can choose how to get there based on my current situation. Being that I am in Minnesota and only have a few days to spare, I choose to fly to San Francisco on October 15th. The final piece of the commitment is the booking of my flight. Once I have done that, there is no going back. I can look forward to my trip and begin planning my entire travel itinerary.
I would never schedule a meeting or RSVP to a gathering on October 15th. Why? - Because I have committed to going to San Francisco. So how is it that we can’t make the same commitment to ourselves? Why can we commit to short term, high-priced items, but not long term, free and rewarding items such as healthy activities.
I will tell you why- because we can’t commit to ourselves like we can commit to others. The biggest reason that I won’t blow off my flight to San Francisco, is that I will have to pay for the ticket whether I go or not. I have committed to the airline and had them save me a seat for the flight. Granted, the vacation will be enjoyable, but the biggest factor is the commitment made with the tickets. That is why they sell them in advance. Would a baseball team deny you a ticket if you wanted to buy it in advance? No. would they honor your ticket if you decided not to go to this game, but a latter game because it was more convenient for you? No. they would gladly ask you to purchase a new ticket.
Another example of committing:
You and I are scheduled to meet for lunch. We have talked over a few dates and times to find out what will work best for both of us. Finally, we decide on next Friday afternoon. The first thing we do is put it on the calendar. Now that Friday afternoon has come around, you head over to the restaurant that we discussed and sit down to a table. As time goes by and I still have not yet arrived, you get agitated. You finally call me and ask where I am. Now that we are on the phone, I tell you that I cannot make it today. Since we are friends, I do want to reschedule. So we pick another date and time that works and we go from there. Well, what if I don’t show up again? Are you likely to try to schedule another lunch with me? Not likely.
Now, this behavior is unthinkable to most of us. If there is an appointment set, you don’t miss it. So why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we blatantly disregard our own appointments. Many of us don’t go as far as setting appointments for ourselves, which can lead to “urgent issues” being thrown into our days without our say. But even when we do, it is harder to keep an appointment with ourselves that it is to keep with someone else.
It is this commitment to others, that we need to show to ourselves. I’m not saying you have to clear your calendar and fill it with your own personal goals. This is not realistic for most of us. But what is realistic is putting something on the calendar for yourself. No matter how small the appointment is, if you schedule it and honor it, you will accomplish more.
If you want to be healthy and enjoy the activities you enjoy, you have to commit to them. More importantly, you have to commit to yourself. Be a better friend to yourself. Commit to you and you will be successful. No matter what the goal is, if you commit yourself to doing it and commit TO yourself, it will happen.
These are all important to varying degrees in lives of most people. We have all made statements similar to those examples at one point or another. For this reason, I don’t doubt our ability to commit. I simply question the areas in which we commit to, or more importantly, the areas in which we do not commit to.
The biggest area we could all use some work on is committing to ourselves. I’ve heard it time and time again: “I can’t go because I have a meeting.” Or “I will be there, here is my RSVP.” Commitments are made all day every day. The problem I see is us committing to ourselves. I don’t often hear, “I will be late to the meeting because it starts during my workout time.” Or “I can’t help now, but will call you as soon as I return from my break.”
We have become so focused on the urgent, that the important is…well, no longer as important. So what happens to less urgent items? They get put on the later-list, or get completely forgotten. But some of these items ARE important. They were important when we set out to do them before and they are important even as we do not do them.
When it comes to living healthy, this is our biggest problem. It’s not that we don’t want to do healthy things or that we want to suffer illness and fatigue. We simply don’t commit to ourselves in order to do what is important. We are too busy focusing on the urgent. But the biggest problem with that pattern is that someone else is deciding what is urgent. Someone else is deciding what you need to do now regardless of the importance that it plays in your life. Some else is deciding that these issues must be taken care of before the things that you consider to be important.
While this is a reality for many of us, it does not have to be the only way. Granted we all have responsibilities that take on urgency and we must commit to. Whether it is work, family or friends, there are many obligations that we all have to commit to. There is nothing wrong with this, but it is also important to put ourselves on the list of commitments. If we don’t, things are very difficult.
You cannot improve health or change habits without committing to yourself. Only when you commit to you can you set and reach goals that will take you to your desired destination. I use the example of the trip:
In order to get to California, I have to do a few things. The very first thing is to pick a destination. San Francisco is where I want to go. Now I have to pick a date. When do I want to go? September 15th, I will go to San Francisco. Now that I know where and when I want to go, I can choose how to get there based on my current situation. Being that I am in Minnesota and only have a few days to spare, I choose to fly to San Francisco on October 15th. The final piece of the commitment is the booking of my flight. Once I have done that, there is no going back. I can look forward to my trip and begin planning my entire travel itinerary.
I would never schedule a meeting or RSVP to a gathering on October 15th. Why? - Because I have committed to going to San Francisco. So how is it that we can’t make the same commitment to ourselves? Why can we commit to short term, high-priced items, but not long term, free and rewarding items such as healthy activities.
I will tell you why- because we can’t commit to ourselves like we can commit to others. The biggest reason that I won’t blow off my flight to San Francisco, is that I will have to pay for the ticket whether I go or not. I have committed to the airline and had them save me a seat for the flight. Granted, the vacation will be enjoyable, but the biggest factor is the commitment made with the tickets. That is why they sell them in advance. Would a baseball team deny you a ticket if you wanted to buy it in advance? No. would they honor your ticket if you decided not to go to this game, but a latter game because it was more convenient for you? No. they would gladly ask you to purchase a new ticket.
Another example of committing:
You and I are scheduled to meet for lunch. We have talked over a few dates and times to find out what will work best for both of us. Finally, we decide on next Friday afternoon. The first thing we do is put it on the calendar. Now that Friday afternoon has come around, you head over to the restaurant that we discussed and sit down to a table. As time goes by and I still have not yet arrived, you get agitated. You finally call me and ask where I am. Now that we are on the phone, I tell you that I cannot make it today. Since we are friends, I do want to reschedule. So we pick another date and time that works and we go from there. Well, what if I don’t show up again? Are you likely to try to schedule another lunch with me? Not likely.
Now, this behavior is unthinkable to most of us. If there is an appointment set, you don’t miss it. So why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we blatantly disregard our own appointments. Many of us don’t go as far as setting appointments for ourselves, which can lead to “urgent issues” being thrown into our days without our say. But even when we do, it is harder to keep an appointment with ourselves that it is to keep with someone else.
It is this commitment to others, that we need to show to ourselves. I’m not saying you have to clear your calendar and fill it with your own personal goals. This is not realistic for most of us. But what is realistic is putting something on the calendar for yourself. No matter how small the appointment is, if you schedule it and honor it, you will accomplish more.
If you want to be healthy and enjoy the activities you enjoy, you have to commit to them. More importantly, you have to commit to yourself. Be a better friend to yourself. Commit to you and you will be successful. No matter what the goal is, if you commit yourself to doing it and commit TO yourself, it will happen.
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