As a life coach I often speak to people who aren’t seeing the results they want and this can be a common issue – especially when people think that just adding a few trips to the gym is going to transform their bodies without them having to make any other changes to their lifestyle or diet. If you are feeling this way then I want you to ask yourself this: “Am I sabotaging or supporting my workouts with my diet and lifestyle choices?”
You see, what happens sometimes is that people start to incorporate exercise into their weekly routine but at the same time start to make allowances in the diet, so suddenly it becomes okay to have another glass of wine or another sugary treat because they are counteracting it with their workouts. From my perspective, this is fine if you don’t mind not seeing certain weight loss results and if you didn’t start focusing on your fitness because you wanted to tone or shape your body. However, if you have begun exercising more often to achieve certain goals you have to make changes in other areas of your life to support this. Getting the right amount of rest and eating according to what you want to achieve is key, and this includes making choices like cutting down on alcohol, swapping sweets, chocolate and crisps for vegetables and fruit and looking at portion control. When we swap our mindset from one of sabotage to a more positive one it starts to feel good, and using affirmations like “I make choices which support me getting fit because it makes me feel healthy and energised” reminds us that there is a much bigger goal in sight.
Try it now: make a wellbeing chart
1. Write down the areas in your life you would like to focus on. It could be your diet, body, health, mind or any other area.
2.Next to the word, write down three things you can introduce to your weekly or daily routine which would help you improve this part of your life. For example, if you have chosen to focus on your body because you want to feel more energised or toned, you may want to write down suggestions such as a daily walk or a weekly yoga session. If you have chosen your mind, you could write that you wish to incorporate mindfulness into your day.
3. Once you have chosen the area you want to work on and written down three ways you can focus on them, choose one and write a commitment statement to yourself. It could be: ‘I commit to a 10 minute walk daily’ or ‘I commit to five minutes of meditation each morning’.
4. Make this your wellbeing statement by adding the reasons for your commitment. For example: ‘I commit to a 10 minute walk daily because it will help me gain clarity and burn calories which will make me feel happy’ or ‘I commit to a 10 minute daily walk because it makes me feel grounded, focused and more relaxed, which helps me have clarity and energy. Taking time for me feels good.’ Making a commitment to ourselves and focusing on the reasons why we are doing it really helps to keep a new routine going. You can go back to this statement whenever you need reminding.
Mindful self awareness
Meditate Your Weight by Tiffany Cruikshank
Whether you are trying to lose weight or just love your body, this book offers a gentle introduction on how to become more mindful about yourself. It may be called Meditate Your Weight but it doesn’t just talk about weight in the way we usually think of it – more in the sense of what’s weighing you down and how that might affect your relationship with your body. It’s based around meditation and works on a 21-day schedule which is helpful to follow. It’s a great guide if you are new to meditation and gives lots of helpful tools on how to get started. The author has a background in yoga and has also included a really simple and easy to follow set of asanas, which are designed specifically to help balance and stimulate the metabolism and nervous system.
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