Language plays a huge role in how we interact with food, exercise, and health in general.
Are you “being good” today? Did you “cheat” over the weekend because you “deserved” it? Are you going to “start later”? Do you exercise because you “have to”?
All of these phrases set us up for failure.
Your eating habits are part of your lifestyle. If you try to make them not match, you’re working against yourself (and the clock).
For example: do you watch a lot of TV? Do you snack while you’re doing it? Or drink soft drinks/alcohol? If you cut back your TV time, your caloric intake would (almost) automatically drop, simply because your snack time went away.
A friend of mine was recently telling me that while she just picked up a weekend job, she’s actually eating better now than she did when she was less busy. How can that be? Busy = bad eating, right? No! Because she continues her weekday routine which includes packed lunches AND because she’s not snacking around the house on the weekends.
Do you need to get another job in order to cut back how much you eat? Of course not. But look at your lifestyle in general. What changes can you make that have nothing to do (directly) with food that will change your consumption?
Personally … I don’t eat healthy food to “be good” and I don’t think I’m “bad” when I eat junk food. But my body feels it almost right away. It’s not a matter of feeling good or bad emotionally – there is no guilt component – it’s a matter of feeling good and bad physically.
Most people have eaten so badly for so long that they don’t even realize that they don’t feel good because it’s just normal.
But if you can make healthy changes and sustain them – and throw in some regular exercise – you will feel different. I hear it over and over and over again from clients, from friends, from random people who I talk to. “I feel so much better. I have so much more energy. I focus better.”
It doesn’t happen in a day, or even a week, but it happens.
“I deserve it.”
You deserve something good, something that you like and want.
Why does it need to be something destructive?
“There is nothing that is healthy that is fun or good.” (Yes, sadly, I have heard this more than once.)
Easiest example: massage. Do you like massage? Would that be a nice reward?
I know a handful of people who reward themselves with exercise. Are they crazy? How is exercise a reward? Well … they have households that are a bit crazy (think: kids) and exercise is their alone time. They go out for a run or a bike ride and are alone and can think and enjoy the outdoors and the solitude for half an hour or an hour.
Combine that with the stress release, increased mood, etc. that exercise brings, and it seems to be less and less a crazy reward.
Still not convinced? How about reading? Do you like to read? Reward yourself with some time to read. Or to do anything that you enjoy. Ultimately, these sorts of things will make you happier than eating will anyway.
