We are creatures of habit, and it’s common for feelings to arise that challenge change or life simply challenges us .
Have you heard of the expression, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results?” I use to have this expression on my bedroom wall while I was competing professionally, and it is a true revelation about most aspects of life from business to personal matters.
We are all ‘ works in progress’ adapting to what life throws at us and trying our hardest to do our best with each situation that can throw a spanner or 10 in the works. When life challenges us with something it’s natural for us to revert back to what comes easy. What ingrained habits need the least resistance to keep on keeping on or what emotions arise from each situation that drives us to act a certain way?
As silly as it sounds, a couple of times a year I re-read my own Naked Habits Ebook. It comes from the heart, my heart, with a real desire to help as many as I can develop healthy habits and an awareness around their current health situations. Personally, it acts as a great reminder to stay on top of my daily choices and to keep choosing a path that’s moving towards my values. Mindfulness is everything and without it old habits are hard to break or resurface.
My health coaching programs are not a traditional weight loss or crazy fitness regime, I prefer to go much deeper and dig out all the good stuff that is going (that is perhaps standing in your way) to help drive change. Quick fix programs are so 1980’s and I like to think we are all waking up to the fact that they simply don’t work. Incorporating the body/mind/emotions triad is definitely the way to move forward.
Here is a snippet from my Naked Habit eBook. I developed this chapter to help overcome the ‘lure’ of returning to the old self, that usually happens during the process of change.
5 Tips To Help You Remain on Track When Life Gets Challenging
To make a change, we have to create change, and to do this, we must try to reframe our perspective from venturing down the same path if they were not the right paths to begin with. For example, if you have a goal to run a half marathon or even a 10km, and you hate running and feel like everything seizes up, your knees hurt and it takes all your might to do the workout, then it is likely that the goal will not be reached. Nothing here is being achieved, and you are better off trying something completely different that you will enjoy, PLUS get results.
The key is to find a workout or eating regimen that is going to give you results, instead of wasting time with one that doesn’t work. Just going through the motions without a thought process in place isn’t going to cut it. I know, you have to start somewhere, but make sure this ‘somewhere’ isn’t where you stay. Intensity and progression PLUS consistency is what you’re after.
I know it’s not that simple to find something that you love doing, but this is the most exciting part! No one is immune to stagnation, so you owe it to yourself to get out there and put yourself on the line by trying something new. Enlist your family and friends’ support to encourage you and make you accountable. I won’t lie and say that it won’t be uncomfortable, but this is the space where the biggest rewards follow.
There are situations that can bring these feelings on, but I like to control them by:
- Stay in the now. Don’t think too much about the past. You can’t change it, and don’t think too much about the future. You can’t control it. Just do what you can do and just be – today.
- It’s okay to retreat from the world…yes, it’s a time to reassess things, and a little soul searching never hurt anyone. These are the times that create life-changing moments. Immerse yourself in the feelings.
- Don’t lose sight of the important stuff. I only have to take one look at my girls, and like a jigsaw puzzle, everything falls into perspective. Remind yourself that yes, this may be challenging you in every way, but the long-term results are going to be amazing. Stick with it; resistance is a great force, but we need it on our side.
- Stay strong. Easy to say, I know, but in the end it is up to us to pull ourselves together. Ask our partners, parents, loved ones for support. Then go back to your values and really tap into your why’s. Do your long-term goals need reassessing if you feel like you have lost focus?
- This is part of life. Part of being a human is going through struggles and tribulations; everyone does. It’s just how we individually deal with things that makes people shine in certain situations. How to kick those negative thoughts to the curb and make the most of the situation can make or break success or failure.
Our minds are incredible, but at the same time our worst enemies. Quietening our thoughts with small reminders can be enough to stop that feeling like you are losing your grasp.
It’s important to stay on top of these thoughts, but also comforting to know that this is all part of the process. We are creating an awareness around these thoughts, acknowledging it, feeling it and moving on. It’s okay to move past this feeling.
So, as you can see with the small snippet from my eBook are quite powerful but motivational at the same time. From my time spent working with 1:1 clients, this has given me the knowledge to develop a book that taps into successful change for YOU. With habits, as with happiness and all good things in life, the secret is to figure it out ourselves. Here is your chance!
Why Old Habits Die Hard, And What You Can Do About It…
