We often try to change our bad habits, and we do the best we can at it.
Of course, the goal is to make the good behavior permanent. Many people think that changing a habit is just a simple decision. While that can work for some people, many of us struggle to change our behaviors.
Mastering good habits
RELATED: RECOMMENDED PLANS FOR YOU
I have been talking with one of my clients a lot lately, and I have developed a tremendous respect for her. She is very honest about her relapses, and she is doing her best to change. I know this because of the way she communicates and the honesty she puts into her words.
While she has lost 10 pounds in 4 months, she can do better, and she knows that.
The best thing is that she understands her relapses, and she is not giving up or feeling bad about them. She knows that it will take time for her to master her good habits.
Don’t beat yourself up
She told me that when she relapses by eating the wrong foods she gets back on track within the next couple of days.
While that doesn’t sound extraordinary, many people give up after a relapse because they think it means they are never going to make it. They think that people who have good habits simply decided to have them and never relapsed. This mistaken belief can cause people to give up.
Not an overnight deal
My point here is that you must understand that changing your habits doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, and you need to be patient and forgiving with yourself about relapses.
I asked my client if she had thought about her next step toward eating healthily. Interestingly enough she said that she has being trying for more than a month now but has not gotten it together yet. The “next step” is to start praying, meditating or giving herself positive feedback.
Negative feedback
People who relapse and give up typically have been giving themselves negative feedback, such as:
“I’m not good enough,”
“I’m never going to make it,”
“To h@#% with all this,”
“I can’t do this,” etc.
Finding a positive source
But when we do the opposite and rely on a Superior Power, or Positive Source, we start changing our behavior within our mind. We can pray, meditate when we wake up and ask for things how we want them to happen:
“Today I’m doing my best,”
“I know I can do this,”
“Let me have the strength to overcome adversity,”
“I know I can do better this time.”
When we start with positive thoughts, little by little we make small changes that help us succeed in our goals.
The energy you attract
So, yes, while changes can be seen as easy for some and hard for others, it all depends on what we say to ourselves and what energy we attract.
Therefore, it is very important that you pay attention to your thoughts just like you pay attention to the food that you are eating. We act as we think, and our lives are the reflection of our actions.
So it doesn’t matter how long it takes you to change your habits, you must continue feeding yourself positive thoughts and forgiving yourself. You’ll become strong enough when you have changed your thought pattern and rely on a Positive Source stronger than any of us.
Connect with Expert Sandro Torres and check out his fantastic book “Lose Weight Permanently: Effective Body Transformation Through Lifestyle Changes”