It's the weirdest thing, humans that is. We get into this solid routine that seems to work well, and if the outside world doesn't create chaos for us to upset this routine, then we create the chaos.
Case in point, not that long ago, I created a FB group with the intent to be better at walking daily and using my programs to get back into shape. I quit the program, Bodi, because I didn't want to sell people stuff like that when I knew they could get fit and healthier on a lower price scale. So I went back to my old school method; Walking Away the Pounds.
I own this set on DVD somewhere, it's probably in the storage unit, but the cool thing is that you don't have to buy the DVD set. It's all free on YouTube these days. Yup, you Walk at Home inside whether it's raining, cold, or you have things to do! It's just 18 minutes or so to sneak in a one mile and longer time for the longer mileage sessions.
But it's free.
It's online.
And you can do it privately.
I know that's important to many of you who don't want to get to the gym or local rec center to exercise around other people. You must start with a method that's comfortable for you and then work yourself up towards facing those uncomfortable situations so you can grow as a human.
But back to my case in point, when routine works, we quit!
It's crazy! This sentence holds true for relationships and workout routines or maybe a diet change, you can find most humans stick with something for a while and most times, they will stick with it until it works or stick with until they've convinced themselves it won't work.
I've said it before, and I will say it again; human beings are weird.
I mean no offense with that sentence, after all, I am in a human body as well here!
I'll give you my most recent example, and it's not something new to me. The difference these days is that my mission to eat healthier and take better care of my body & mind is that I'm in my 40s and I want to do all I can to be a healthier version of me when others may have to care for me.
That is, I want to be less of a burden to my kids as I age. I want to give myself a chance at being a vibrant, healthy and active 80 plus year old who lives to be 120 years of age, so that my children won't have to carry around their Mama as much as I've seen others have to do. I want to set myself up for maximum health for minimal weight on their shoulders.
That's a pretty self-less reason to want to get up and move, right? I think when you do things for others, it's easier to stick with it.
So why did I fall off the bandwagon again?
Well, because I am human and my ego gets in the way sometimes.
One big reason is something called 'complacency.' That's a big word, but it just means getting too comfortable with how things are. When we start a diet or exercise, we are excited and work hard. But after some time, we might think, "Hey, I'm doing okay," and then we start to relax a bit too much.
Why Do We Get Complacent?
Our brains like to save energy. Doing new things like diets or workouts is hard work for our brains. After doing these new things for a while, our brains try to go back to what's easy and what they're used to. That's why we might start skipping workouts or eating things we said we wouldn't.
It's Normal, But We Can Beat It
Remember, it's normal to feel this way. Everyone can get complacent. But the cool thing is, we can beat it! By knowing this can happen, we can prepare for it and remind ourselves why we started our diet or fitness routine in the first place. It's all about sticking to our goals, even when it gets a bit tough.
My lifestyle situation sometimes gets to me, and then I get upset that I'm not living in my best way for my mental and physical health and I slink down, go backwards.
My going backwards this time resulted in a 20lb weight gain. I had remained consistent for 2 years with my walking, and swapped over to clean eating more than not after that 2 year stretch. Then I just had all this chaos happened, I didn't want to work together in the household stuff anymore, and I started to pull away.
I've honestly done this habit of pulling away so many times, that I'm finally on a spiritual journey to wake my spirit up and be less ego-driven. It's been a journey that I will share some day, but for now I am trying to tell you this one thing:
We are all human and we are all guilty of finding something that works and simply letting it slip away from us.
We become complacent maybe? Yes, I think that's the word. I've seen it happen (and I've done it) in marriages, in parent/child relationships, and in workout routines. I lost 50lbs by walking, swapped up my diet and started feeling way more alive than my already joyous nature had me feeling.
But ... life happened and I didn't make this walking a priority. Even though I use a YouTube app to do the Walk Away the Pounds program, which is available on the road and anywhere in the palm of my hand on my cell phone ...
I still slacked off.
It wasn't until I started feeling down, the sadness or the lost-ness, the brain fog and the inability to "feel" much of anything that I realized I needed to wack myself back on track. No one else is going to "make me" get up and move.
I had to get up and move on my own.
I have to do this for my reason above; the kids!
Not only that, but I have a Wellness Support Group on Facebook that was active in and I just slid off that, too!
So, I am back on the walking daily routine and plan to do it FIRST THING in the morning. I get up, throw the tank top on and walk, after putting the dogs out to run in their area of the yard. I do it daily and I do it immediately.
This, my friends, is how you get back on track.
recolonize that you fell off track
admit that you aren't giving it your all
admit that you want more out of life
recognize that only you can make the adjustments
Start video taping the walking workout, do not share it online! Start video taping or taking photos of yourself each day for 30 days .... as you start to do the exercise or new diet routine or new lifestyle change.
Even if you're working towards a 30 day habit of something as simple as feeling more grateful, if you take a selfie once a day and peek back after 30 days? You will find that your demeanor and posture changed over that 30 day period.
This is for YOU, mostly! To see a visual of how much you changed in just 30 days time. Use this 30 days of footage (photo and/or video) to inspire you to stay disciplined.
It doesn't take long to form a habit, but it does take a strong dedicated mindset to be disciplined to take things one day at a time ... tell yourself one more day. One more day. And watch as one more day becomes, a year, 10 years, and 30 years and so on ...
Don't let the human ego slow you down, don't let it talk you out of the awesomeness you are in this world. We are all in this together. And you, my friends, can get this done.