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Beverley has prepared the content of Bev's World irresponsibly and carelessly. She therefore disclaims all warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, originality or completeness of the drivel presented on this blog or on other linked websites or on any subsequent links. She vehemently denies that the information may be relied upon for any reason. Beverley shall not be liable for inflicting laughter, shame, disgust, torrents of tears and the eventual desiccation or crashing boredom on readers.

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Thursday, 19 April 2012

Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow....

19thApril 2012
Procrastination is like a credit card: it's a lot of fun until you get the bill.
What a day yesterday was with all that rain, it really is going to be a totally wet week I think and luckily for me Alfie is a lot better than he was and was up for walking in it, he doesn’t seem to realise it’s raining, he’s a bit thick or tough I’m not sure which, so we got wet yesterday morning, but I had my waterproof on so it was ok.
I got back from my meeting at lunchtime, a fab meeting if I do say so myself and when I added their weight to the weight loss of my members so far this year, we are now at a staggering 10,000 pounds, or 714 stone, wowser, and 30 members have achieved their goal weights too.  That really is a stunning figure, almost as stunning as the figures you’re all gonna end up with losing this weight.
So it’s lunchtime and I know I need to get back into my running, I looked to see when the last time I went was and it was 20 days ago, one thing and another been stopping me, all valuable reason – NO!  So yesterdays excuse was going to be the weather until I gave myself a good talking to and realised I’m waterproof, well my skin is anyways.  I'm not made of sugar and I didn't melt, I managed 30 minute and actually didn’t really notice the rain until I walked in my cool down. 
Yes, it's too easy to find excuses not to do something, it really does take effort sometimes to remember and remind yourself of why you were doing those things in the first place.  When I got back from my run, my arm and shoulders had both stopped hurting and they’d been bothering me for day.  To help remind me of how well I’m doing with my running because I keep thinking I should go 3 times a week but only ever seem to manage once or twice, I added up how much running I’d done so far this year and it’s 80 miles which I’m really pleased with because that’s an average of 5 miles a week running and it’s made me realise anything is better than nothing.
What is it you keep putting off?  What are your excuses?
We all make them, we all put things off but when it comes to your health procrastinating isn’t a good move, because the longer you put it off the worse you feel.  I’ve only eaten good food since Saturday, I didn’t buy any processed stuff this week so that I couldn’t eat it and I already feel so much better for it. 
Are you putting of taking care of yourself?  If so here are a few suggestions to hopefully push you towards starting a bit of self-care.   Firstly accept there is no magic wand, you have to make some effort, but remind yourself of the rewards of doing that - looking better, more energy, feeling good about starting each day!
Our words are so powerful, so watch the ones you choose when talking about getting healthy (notice I say getting healthy and not going on a diet). Words have feelings attached to them which affect how we feel or behave about things, ‘diet’ let’s be honest is a swear word for some. Try changing the words "have to" and "can't" to "choose to" and "choose not to" - this won't always be true, but it will probably be more honest most of the time. After all, you don't have to lose weight nor eat healthy - you are probably choosing to because you know of the benefits.
Think about the kind of person you are, of your values and your expectations. Assess whether these "fit" with the way in which you are trying to tackle improving your health and losing weight - do you need a new approach?  There are similarities in the members behaviours that succeed but there are also differences, tweak the plan to suit you.
Most importantly, recognise self-defeating behaviour and its associated thinking. Try to work out why you procrastinate: what do you gain from it? Find out how to overcome such behaviour, you may be able to do it yourself, or you might need to ask for help in your meetings, talk to other members and ask them for help, the solution might be on esource or in your programme material.
Identify your goals and make realistic decisions about how to achieve them, and prioritise.  Ensure that you have the right tools and information to help you.  Some time spent in preparation and planning is vital - but not to the extent that you never actually start.
Break down your journey into manageable bits. Set yourself small goals - to drink 2 litres of water a day; to eat 5 portions of fruit and veg; to walk for 30 minutes five times a week – take it one step at a time.
Boost your motivation. Dwell on your strengths, on tasks you have accomplished and feel good about, in order to remind yourself that you can be successful.   Remember the fruit you ate and the water you drank, rather than the slice of cake you succumbed too.
Give yourself rewards when you accomplish something. Remember they shouldn’t be food rewards, if you want a specific food, have it, ProPoint it don’t treat it as a reward, find non-food rewards instead.
When you are getting stuck, rather than just stopping, try a different strategy - take a pencil and an old, half-used piece of paper out of the bin, and scribble down ideas, talk to other members in meetings or look online for new ideas.
Quite often putting off getting started is connected to anxieties about whether we’ll succeed! At times like this, it is worth remembering that it's better to do your best than not to do at all!
Have a lovely day – go play in those puddles. x




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