Healthy Living: Are you Team Summer or Team Fall?
Are you holding onto weekends at the beach or have you already ordered your first PSL?
Well, even if you’re a summer lover, fall has its perks:
- It’s a new season!
- The air is crisp and fresh.
- Fall tends to have more structure.
- It’s a runway to the holi-daze (I mean, days!)
Fall is a chance to press the reset button. Take a deep breath and give these three steps a try this season:
- Find your why.
- Get visual.
- Think positively.
- Find your why.
Start by making a goal. Let’s use I want to be healthier as an example.
Now, ask yourself why you want to get healthy. And try to answer with statements that begin with I want. What you want is key to this process! Try asking yourself why at least 5 times to get to your true desire. Like this:
- Why do I want to be healthier? I want to lose weight.
- Why do I want to lose weight? I want to get rid of the bulge at my waist line.
- Why do I want to get rid of the bulge at my waist line? I want to feel more comfortable in my body.
- Why do I want to feel more comfortable in my body? When I feel more comfortable in my body, I feel more confident.
- Why do I want to feel more confident? When I feel more confident, I perform better in every area of my life.
Your first answer may be a bit superficial. So, keep going. Allow yourself to get a bit deep. It’s your deep why that will propel you forward … even through challenges. If you don’t identify your deep why, when you face resistance, you’ll be more likely to turn around. When you know your challenges are worth it, you’ll keep going.
2. Get visual.
Seeing is believing is a truism. But out of sight out of mind is too. Visual reminders have been shown to help you stay accountable to your goals. One tried-and-true method is a vision board. But maybe your why is really personal. Maybe you don’t want to broadcast it. Or maybe you’re just not crafty.
Vision boards work. And also they are work. So, if you’d like a quicker, simpler method, use Post-its! Place Post-its in obvious locations like your laptop, your bathroom mirror, or even the sun visor in your car. Mix and match the colors, sizes, and shapes. Have fun with it! A more digital suggestion is to use your phone. Your phone is likely with you wherever you go. So, why not use it as an accountability partner? You can write your goal on your lock screen. You can even set daily reminders with your clock app. With these tactics, you’ll keep yourself accountable every time you look at your phone.
Now that your goal is literally visible, try to visualize it. This simply means seeing it in your mind so that your body can follow. Sticking with the example I want to feel more confident in my body. Envision yourself as a confident. How do you look? How do you move? Where do you go? What do you create? With time, you’ll identify as confident.
3. Think positively.
The power of positive thinking can’t be overstated.
While may be woo woo, it’s also science.
Specifically, it’s cognitive behavior therapy.
Your thoughts become your feelings.
Your feelings create your actions.
Your actions lead to your results.
Therefore, your thoughts become your results.
Let’s talk about each step.
Thoughts are essentially opinions. They can be qualified and they can change. They’re not facts. For example, I want to get healthier is a thought.
Your thoughts cause your feelings … emotions. They’re human. They’re energy. Some examples are happy, sad, frustrated, confused. And how you feel produces your actions. I feel proud to be getting healthier.
Action is what you do. Or what you don’t do as a result of your feelings. When I feel proud, I dedicate myself fully to my plan to nourish and fuel my body.
The result is the outcome of your actions. I wear whatever I want.
The good news is that you’re in the driver’s seat of your fall … of your life. You, and only you, are in control of this process. When you focus on yourself, a world of opportunity opens for you.
New opportunities for a new season and a new you.
Happy Fall! 🍁🍂
by Brittny Howell, MD
@morphmedspa