Four Thoughts for Resisting Unhealthy Behaviors

We say a lot of things to ourselves that get in our way of being healthy.  “It’s hard!”, “It won’t matter,” “I’m tired, maybe tomorrow.”  Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D. and behavioral researcher, calls this “the negative wall of self talk.”

When I find myself guilty of listening to this negative wall of self-talk, I’ve learned to change it using some of the inspirational sayings or thought-changing tricks in today’s blog.  These have worked well for me to keep me exercising and avoiding a slip back into frequent unhealthy eating. I hope some of them work for you.  If you have any great sayings that work for you, please share them with us.

1. It  all comes down to the moment that alarm goes off in the morning. Every single day you can wake up and it’s what you decide to do that’s going to define who you are.” (Chris Powell,  Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition ). One of my most challenging times is weekday mornings when the alarm clock rings. I’m not one of those people who wakes up with energy.  When the alarm clock rings, and I’d rather roll over and go back to sleep, I repeat this phrase and it helps me get out of bed.    
   
2. The urge to XXX will go away whether you XXX or not.  You can substitute just about any unhealthy behavior for the XXX.  It’s really true. The urge does go away. This was one of the most powerful aids from Smoke Enders that helped me quit smoking. They gave us a card to carry with us. When I had the urge to smoke, I’d look at the card, repeat the saying, take a few deep breaths and start to think about something else. This phrase still works for me now on other things; the urge for that cake will go away whether I eat the cake or not.   
   
3. Saying “My Choice is XXX.”  Saying this makes you aware that you are making a conscious choice.  This only makes me more mindful of making possibly unhealthy choices, but also helps me modify my choices. For example, at the beauty salon yesterday I got a cup of coffee and next to the coffee was a platter of chocolate chip cookies. I was going to reach for two, but I said to myself,” no, I’m choosing to have only one chocolate chip cookie” and walked away.  In Choices: Discover Your 100 Most Important Life Choices,”  Shad Helmstetter outlines the four steps of Choices.
   

   1.       Ask “is this a choice?”

   2.       If yes, say immediately “This Choice is Mine.”

   3.       After thinking about the choice, say “My choice is…”

   4.       Be aware at a conscious level you made the choice. “The reason I made this choice is….”
4. I might not feel like exercising now, but I’ll feel energized when I’m done and for the rest of the day.”  Newton was right. A body at rest tends to stay at rest. Sometimes my body just doesn’t want to get moving. To break that inertia, I frequently have to coax myself into moving by remembering how good I’ll feel after I exercise and reminding myself that when I exercise, not only does that great exercise buzz stay with me all day, but it also puts me in a much better mood.

Just remember to  keep some health-inspiring thought in your back pocket to counter the excuses your brain comes up with for not choosing a healthy path.  James Allen, As a Man Thinketh,” says “They themselves are the makers of themselves, by virtue of the thoughts which they choose and encourage, the mind is the master weaver.”  

What thoughts can make you weave a healthier life?