Yesterday: I maintained the integrity of my calorie budget, I remained refined sugar-free, I met my daily water goal, and I stayed well connected with exceptional support.
I invited Kristin over last night for a good on-plan dinner. I use calorie-cutting strategies--and it's always fun to witness her amazement when the weights and measures add up to a reasonable calorie count for a very satisfying on-plan meal (see featured tweet below). I put it in my MFP--then shared it with her via text, where she simply taps it to add into her MFP. It works well. I also swam yesterday, securing 7 Stars for the day and meeting my four workout goal for the week.
The calendar! It's weird to me how the intentional action of doing this inspires and motivates me. Two things it's helped so far: Except for one dinner, where Kristin kindly and generously treated me, I personally prepared/weighed/measured every meal and I hit my goal of four workout sessions of at least thirty minutes each. I'm enthused!
Generating enthusiasm for the process of our daily practice is critically important. Waking up each day with an embrace and a generally positive attitude is far more productive and enjoyable than waking up with dread and resistance. It starts with the approach--the design of our personalized daily practice.
It's difficult to get enthused about something that isn't suited for us. Why would we subscribe to a plan we will wake up dreading? The answer, I believe, is because often, we're inclined to jump on a diet instead of a personalized daily practice of intentional actions. Impatience encourages diet mentality. We want results now! If the latest and greatest diet plan that seems to be working for everyone else in the world, promises fast and dramatic results--then sign us up!! But wait...
All we know has led us where we are. What if we cleared the table of these things we know and started putting things on the table uniquely fitted for us each day? What if, instead of trying to summon willpower needed to conform to a diet plan, we spent that energy summoning patience for the process--a process that starts with simplicity and common sense? Assembling the tools on our table is a very important consideration.
What are the tools?
There's our trigger list, that list of foods that once we start eating we can't stop eating. There's the list of foods we enjoy, the kinds that don't seem to break our internal food thermostat. There's a list of ideas on how we'll be accountable. There's a list of support sources we connect with each day. There's a clear definition of the boundaries in our plan. There's the mental/emotional/spiritual practice we make important each day; things like prayer, meditation, reading, listening, absorbing, consuming positive and supportive material. There's personal journaling where we put pen to paper or keyboard to screen--and we attempt to connect, not with how we think things should be--rather, how they are. What are we feeling? What's working well? What isn't fitting right? Why, why, why are we making this important? Where is this daily practice taking us?? What are the consequences?
With a personal and customized plan in place--utilizing a new set of tools on the table, suddenly--we can set about generating real enthusiasm for the daily practice that helps us be well and stay well. Enthusiasm without a plan is shallow--and diving into shallow waters isn't a good idea--it doesn't end well.
Creating a doable/workable daily plan practice creates substance--and depth. Dive in with enthusiasm for the daily plan you're creating. Patience for the process means understanding that it will evolve and grow along the way. This isn't about designing the perfect plan from Day 1. It's about getting started.
Simplicity supports consistency and consistency beats intensity, and that's something to get enthused about! When we're enthused and suddenly we're consistently moving in a positive direction, that's when we're in a position to fully believe the positive visualizations on the road ahead.
First things first--this is a daily practice because we only have today. Working the elements of our plan is a one day at a time approach. This is something I must/we must always remember. It is this daily practice that can generate a positive trajectory. The positive visualizations shouldn't take away from this one-day-at-a-time approach, instead--they can serve as a reminder of why this single day perspective is important to maintain.
Positive visualizations are something I've made important from Day 1. It wasn't intentional at first--it was very natural. After a while, with consistent positive progress, I started believing in visualizations awakened from their long-forgotten place in my brain. The visualizations started becoming more creative and intentioned. Where do we want this to go? What things can we not do today because of our obesity, that we dream of doing someday? How might this path positively affect our health? How will it feel the day the doctor says, "you no longer need these medications?" Hopes, desires, and dreams--suddenly become things we can believe. It's all ahead of us. A consistent practice of positive visualizations help solidify our "why?" Why are we doing this? Why is this important to us? Start with those questions and positive visualizations will come.
I'm enthused for one more day. If literally earning little gold stars contribute to that enthusiasm, and it does, then fantastic! Whatever works, right?
Featured Tweet:
Earlier: Tonight's dinner- Meatloaf prepared with 6oz 96% lean beef, 3oz fresh chopped mushrooms, finely diced red onion, diced red bell pepper, 1/2 large egg white, and 35g (1/2 serving) refined sugar-free Newman's Own marinara. Meatloaf cal: 304, entire plate: 597 cal. pic.twitter.com/UzVQOz6n6n— Sean Anderson (@SeanAAnderson) January 27, 2019
Thank you for reading and your continued support,
Practice, peace, and calm,
Sean
If you're interested in connecting via social media:
I accept friend requests on MyFitnessPal. My daily food logging diary is set to public.
MFP Username: SeanAAnderson
My Twitter: SeanAAnderson
Facebook: www.facebook.com/seananderson505
Instagram: SeanAAnderson
Also--I'd love you to subscribe to my podcast Transformation Planet! You can find it in Apple Podcasts, in the Google Play store for Android, and listed wherever you find your favorite podcasts! If you haven't listened before, you'll find 20 episodes waiting for you!
No comments:
Post a Comment
I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. Thank you for your support!