This is a re-posting from SparkPeople click here to see the original post
This is great question to ponder:
Why do you want to be healthy and fit?
maybe one to ponder on your own page.
SparkPeople is a free health resource that you can explore at www.SparkPeople.com
SGCC Activity #1: Why do you want to be healthy & fit?
Thursday, April 27, 2017
One of the first actions I like to ask people to take is to answer the question: Why do you want to be healthy & fit?
This may take some thinking. And your answer may change over time. For example, when I was younger, I had so much social anxiety that I rarely thought about the goals of other people. But then after going through the original SparkPeople program to help conquer anxiety and reach other goals, I eventually realized that one of my real goals in life was to help other people. As a side note, I find this happens with many people who overcome something; they then develop a burning desire to help other people. This is one reason for the Positive Force cornerstone, but I’m getting ahead of myself ☺.
Some examples of why to be healthy & fit:
* Being true to your values and beliefs
* Being a good parent, employee, son/daughter, friend
* Living longer, healthier, happier
* Making an impact on the world
* Conquering or managing a disease
* Traveling and having adventures (with people?)
* Reaching other goals in life
This activity isn’t about setting specific goals yet – we’ll get to that later. Instead this is more about figuring out your true foundation in life.
As you think about this, don’t keep the reasons in your head. Instead, WRITE THEM DOWN. This will make the reasons more concrete for you. I once read that the action of writing something down creates a deeper track in the memory area of your brain. I can’t remember if this research showed a difference between actually writing something and typing.
If you:
1) Know what you are fighting for
2) Connect that what you are fighting for can be enhanced by good health and fitness
Then this equation can make you unstoppable over time. It’s much more likely you will become truly committed to reaching your goals.
In an interesting coincidence, last night I watched an episode of the TV show Scrubs on Netflix. In this episode, Dr. Cox, the Chief of Medicine, asks each of the med students, “Why do you want to be a doctor?” He does this because he knows being in med school and being a doctor is hard, so he wants the students to know why they want to take this path. One student in particular had a hard time answering this question.
You may have a challenging path ahead of you. I’d like to help you make that path as easy and fun as possible so you can enjoy the journey. Part of that is challenging you to know just why you want to take this path.
A future activity from the Fire Cornerstone will challenge you to put these reasons and your goals in as many places possible so you can use them for a constant source of motivation. If you’d like to work ahead, you can start on that now ☺.
One answer that is not acceptable for this activity is to say, “I want to lose X pounds”. I’ll share a story with you about this. We once had a guy named Calvin come into our office and after talking about what we did, he said, “ahhh, I need to lose 20 pounds” in a negative tone. We said, “that’s not a real goal reason. WHY do you want to lose 20 pounds.” After thinking about this for a minute, he said, “I want to be healthy to play basketball with my son as he grows up.” Now THAT is a good goal reason. We told him to write that goal down, put it on his refrigerator, carry a photo of his son around with him for motivation, and some other tips. Guess what, he reached his goal because he had a much more powerful motivator than losing X pounds.
Do you know why you want to be healthy & fit?
Return to SparkPeople System Overview:
www.sparkpeople.com/mypage_public_journal_individual.asp?blog_id=6354496
This may take some thinking. And your answer may change over time. For example, when I was younger, I had so much social anxiety that I rarely thought about the goals of other people. But then after going through the original SparkPeople program to help conquer anxiety and reach other goals, I eventually realized that one of my real goals in life was to help other people. As a side note, I find this happens with many people who overcome something; they then develop a burning desire to help other people. This is one reason for the Positive Force cornerstone, but I’m getting ahead of myself ☺.
Some examples of why to be healthy & fit:
* Being true to your values and beliefs
* Being a good parent, employee, son/daughter, friend
* Living longer, healthier, happier
* Making an impact on the world
* Conquering or managing a disease
* Traveling and having adventures (with people?)
* Reaching other goals in life
This activity isn’t about setting specific goals yet – we’ll get to that later. Instead this is more about figuring out your true foundation in life.
As you think about this, don’t keep the reasons in your head. Instead, WRITE THEM DOWN. This will make the reasons more concrete for you. I once read that the action of writing something down creates a deeper track in the memory area of your brain. I can’t remember if this research showed a difference between actually writing something and typing.
If you:
1) Know what you are fighting for
2) Connect that what you are fighting for can be enhanced by good health and fitness
Then this equation can make you unstoppable over time. It’s much more likely you will become truly committed to reaching your goals.
In an interesting coincidence, last night I watched an episode of the TV show Scrubs on Netflix. In this episode, Dr. Cox, the Chief of Medicine, asks each of the med students, “Why do you want to be a doctor?” He does this because he knows being in med school and being a doctor is hard, so he wants the students to know why they want to take this path. One student in particular had a hard time answering this question.
You may have a challenging path ahead of you. I’d like to help you make that path as easy and fun as possible so you can enjoy the journey. Part of that is challenging you to know just why you want to take this path.
A future activity from the Fire Cornerstone will challenge you to put these reasons and your goals in as many places possible so you can use them for a constant source of motivation. If you’d like to work ahead, you can start on that now ☺.
One answer that is not acceptable for this activity is to say, “I want to lose X pounds”. I’ll share a story with you about this. We once had a guy named Calvin come into our office and after talking about what we did, he said, “ahhh, I need to lose 20 pounds” in a negative tone. We said, “that’s not a real goal reason. WHY do you want to lose 20 pounds.” After thinking about this for a minute, he said, “I want to be healthy to play basketball with my son as he grows up.” Now THAT is a good goal reason. We told him to write that goal down, put it on his refrigerator, carry a photo of his son around with him for motivation, and some other tips. Guess what, he reached his goal because he had a much more powerful motivator than losing X pounds.
Do you know why you want to be healthy & fit?
Return to SparkPeople System Overview:
www.sparkpeople.com/mypage_public_journal_individual.asp?blog_id=6354496
I want to feel active and well and alive. All I’ve done this weekend is eat. I have one good moment or meal then sabotage myself. I want to scream. I keep going back to the passage Julia shared ang the song she sent me. But I still feel so out of control. What dear God am I missing. I felt so good when o was close to my goal. I want that feeling again!
ReplyDeleteI so understand!!!!! I go back and forth, up and down! I've been trying to listen to Chopra's book "what are you hungry for" - I know what to do and I know you do too! Why is it so hard? Love you!
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