Starting the New Year - Motivation

Starting off this New Year is a day a lot of people will resolve to make better choices.  It really seems to work great for a few days .... How do you keep your momentum going? 

Motivation seems to come easily, but it is consistency that is hard to maintain.  Let's break it down a bit. Human behavior will always seek pleasure and/or run from pain.  So if you can take the time to look at your goals, identify which parts will cause you pleasure or pain - after you achieve or don't achieve that goal.  You will find this to be very enlightening and it will give you a powerful tool to stay on track.

If you make choices that do not move you towards your goal - think about the pain or pleasure associated with each choice that caused you to make a decision.

Here's an example:
You are hungry and make that not so good choice of fast food.  Now ask yourself, What was the pain and pleasure of that choice?  Some examples might be:

• Pain of taking the time to prepare something healthy for myself
• Pain of headache and withdrawal if you don’t have food right now
• Pleasure of immediate gratification of satisfying your cravings

If you understand the pain, and pleasure behind your choices, you will be empowered to make better choices the next time: 

• If it was the pain of fixing something, then you know to bring a healthy snack with you
• If it was the pleasure of satisfying a craving and avoiding the pain of headache and withdrawal from a toxic food, then you know you need to change what you are eating that causes the headache.

The same rule applies with exercise - What causes pain and/or pleasure when you choose to exercise or not?

Using this tool, helps me make better choices about food, exercise, my life --  if I know why or what my choices will do to me or not do for me.  This will also help establish the consistency in your choices.

Be sure to set reachable goals. If you set a goal and don't know how to get there, ASK.  Let me know how I can help you reach levels of God given health.

Happy New Year and may God bless your efforts for healthy choices this year.
Zina