I feel the need to explain.
If we drew a line in the sand, and stood in front of it today – fully intending to step over that line and start a new journey from this day forward – we would all have a different starting place. This we know to be true. And by starting place, I mean a combination of things… like:
- Our age
- Our relative health
- Our knowledge of our own bodies
- Our daily habits / routine
- Our trust in our food system
- Our relationship with our doctors
- How empowered we feel
- How motivated we are
- Our happiness / satisfaction with life
- Our support system
- Our value system
- Our personality type
- Our experience
- Our homelife
- Our desire to learn
- Our religious beliefs
- How we were raised
- Our financial comfort
- Our self image
- Our emotions
- Our personal goals
- If and for how long we’ve been suffering
- Our resistance to change
I don’t need to tell you that we’re all different – you are human, you have life experience… this is something you know.
FACT.
But – no matter what our starting point is, there is something we should all understand. Our starting point today is the sum total of all of our life experiences, it’s the sum total of the way we move, the food we eat, the sleep we get, the relationships we have, the education we received, the people who raised us, the communities we live in. Our bodies and minds have been shaped by our experiences throughout our life, for better or worse.
ALSO FACT.
Therefore – if you have desire to change in any way, physically, emotionally, or mentally, you should know that you will have to change your life experiences going forward.
ENTER: YOUR 52-WEEK KICK-IN-THE-ASS
My goal with this email series is to prompt you to have a think about the status quo, to ferret out what’s not working – and to get you to introduce new daily habits that WILL move you in a direction toward your goals. There is no fast track to health, happiness, awesomeness, super-hero status… positive incremental change will get you there sustainably.
I know, I know… that’s not what you wanted to hear…
But the opportunity here is this: A pleasurable, leisurely life experience where you prioritize the JOURNEY rather than the END RESULT.
[Oooo… I like that… sign me up for a life of pleasure and leisure please]When you make drastic change, you create all sorts of stress, you’re probably not enjoying yourself, you are hyper-focused on the end result, and you’ll likely miss out on your life. Not only that, but what do you do when you reach your ‘end-result’? If you fall back on old habits because you’re exhausted, or because you’re done ‘dieting’ then your body will physically and mentally bounce back to it’s starting point – or surpass it. Awesome.
I know this well, I was in that position not too long ago. I prioritized my time at the gym over my time with my family – became neurotic about it too – had to go 5-6 times a week to feel like I was exercising. Oh, I lost weight, you can read about it here… but I lost a serious amount of health too. <<< Fast forward a couple of years and I’m healthier now than I’ve ever been, and today I hit the ‘gym’ 1-2 times a week, if that.
How about this idea? If you seek change, celebrate your life everyday – by trying something new. Enjoy the experience and know that if you make slow change toward choices that you know to be better for you, create new habits… you will reap the rewards.