Ready! Set! Go!…Just Do It!

[Bonita]

Tomorrow always seems like a good day to make health behavior changes. Many people want to eat better and exercise. Instead, they procrastinate with excuses like I’ll wait until I can save money to do this or it’s too cold out for exercising so I’ll wait for better weather. Months and even years go by without taking action. Before they know it, they’ve gained 20 pounds or have more health problems.

There is something in every one of you that waits and listens for the sound in yourself. It is the only true guide you will ever have. And if you cannot hear it, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that somebody else pulls. - Howard Thurman

Your Inner Voice

Today lets to hear and work with your inner voice. That is because we have helped you by motivating you all the way through. Now to reach and maintain your goals you have to keep going. You need to rely on you.

Realize that you have incredible power, you have you. You have your inner voice, the voice that tells you not to go through the red light because it’s not worth it. This is the voice you taught yourself not to listen to, so you go through the red light anyway. The moment you hear the siren, you say to your inner voice, “I knew I shouldn’t have gone through the light.” Well, you didn’t listen, only your inner voice paid attention. Why do you ignore yourself? Every time you do, things you do not want to happen occur. If we learned to listen, we would know the truth. To do the wrong things in our lives, we have to ignore that inner voice.

That’s how you gain weight; you don’t listen to your inner voice as it tells you that your clothes are feeling tight. You don’t listen to your inner voice as you make wrong food choices. You don’t listen to your inner voice as it tells you to exercise.

If you have been reading our newsletters then you have learned and know enough that you know what you should be doing in regards to your eating, exercise and health and wellness. Now it’s up to you. It’s up to you to listen to your inner voice and do what you know you should do. If you listen to your inner voice, you will make the right decision and then you will both achieve your goals and maintain them.

When we learn to listen to and influence our inner voice, not only will we make better decisions in our personal life, we will also uncover a wealth of knowledge and information that will become more available to ourselves. You will be surprised how much you know and how many positive outcomes in your life you can achieve.

Train the Mind to hear your inner voice. When you get up in the morning, listen to your inner voice saying, “Do not lie back down; get up.” Hear your inner voice all day as it tells you not to have that drink, don’t eat that cake, or don’t go through that red light.

We know what we should do, so we will listen to our inner voice and we won’t eat that cake! We are learning that we can train our mind and we can win!

So you know you need to use your Checklist, and use your affirmations. So listen to your inner voice and do what you know you should

There is a better way to change! Take the time to prepare properly. Lay all your obstacles out on the table and try to overcome them, set a realistic quit date (smoking), write up a witnessed or co-signed commitment contract with yourself and then just do it (take action). Notice that the just do it part is listed last. These words alone are usually not enough to motivate people to change, unless they are already in the action stage and just need a little pep talk (see the Weigh the Costs and Benefits of Changing fact sheet). Change never begins with action. Rather, it requires a firm commitment to change and a plan of action.

“The real contest is always between what you have done
and what you’re capable of doing. You measure yourself against yourself and nobody else.”
Geoffrey Gaberino


So what’s stopping you from making positive changes? List your obstacles. For example, if you’ve had difficulty starting an exercise program, what is holding you back? Is it long work hours, difficulty finding 30 minutes of free time, weather, lack of social support, or uncertainty about what exercises are best? Part of the process of preparing to change is to reappraise the situation. Try to find at least one realistic solution for each obstacle. According to a Consumer Reports survey, the most frequently reported methods people use to encourage themselves to exercise are: pick the same time of day (56%), exercise near home or work (48%), exercise outdoors (42%), join a health club (32%), exercise with friends or family (24%), weigh yourself (20%), and “watch TV during a workout (15%).

Don’t set yourself up for failure. Start dates and quit dates to take action should be realistic. For example, early December is not a good time to start a 1,200-calorie diet or to quit smoking if you plan to attend social events with others who smoke. Wait a few weeks so you can begin to change with fewer distractions. Be sure to include your start date or quit date in your health and wealth goal. Start date examples include:

> I want to lose two pounds a month for eight months starting on March 1
> “I’m buying an exercise bike today and, starting tomorrow, I will pedal for ___ hour(s) while watching television five or more nights a week.”

A quit date example is I will stop smoking on (date).

According to the book Changing for Good, Setting a time frame is critical for behavior change. Choosing a date to begin can help prevent both premature action and prolonged procrastination. The authors advice If you are truly ready for action, choose a date within the next month to capitalize on your decision-making momentum. If you continue to delay a change, it is a sign that you are in the contemplation stage (thinking about taking action) rather than the preparation stage (developing a firm, detailed plan of action) of change.

As noted above, the timing of a start date or quit date is important. Avoid the holidays and summer vacation when normal routines are disrupted and the temptation to self-indulge is high. The authors of Changing for Good recommend New Year’s Day or right after a birthday because “the external environment is most supportive.” Both of these are times when it is quite normal to reassess your life and want to make desired improvements.

Changing for Good also advises self-changers to go public with their commitment to change. This increases accountability because others are looking over your shoulder. Fear of the embarrassment of failing can be a powerful motivator to stay on track. In addition, by sharing their plans to change, self-changers may be able to enlist the support of family and friends who might otherwise undermine their efforts.

One way that some people prepare to change is by writing a simple one-page behavior change contract with them selves that includes their health goal, the specific actions they plan to complete, and the rewards they intend to achieve. Like any other legal contract, a behavior change contract should be dated, signed, and witnessed. The witness can help hold the self-changer accountable and serve as a source of encouragement and support. Behavior change experts advise posting the contract in a place where it is easily seen. A blank contract can be found below.

In addition to a behavior change contract, you might also want to develop a related tracking form to note your daily performance of each planned action.

Your tracking form would like something like the one below. You’ll mark the box when the above actions are accomplished for each day of each week to check your progress toward your goal.

Behavior Change Tracking Form: Health Goal

Week of: ________________________

Planned Action Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1. Walk 20 minutes at lunch with co-workers

X X X X
2.



3.



4.




Behavior Change Contract


Name: ________________________________________________________________________

Health Goal: _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I commit to take the following actions to reach my health goal:

1. _____________________________________________________________________

2. _____________________________________________________________________

3. _____________________________________________________________________

4. ____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________ ___________________________

Self-Changer’s Signature Date

____________________________________ _______________________________

Witness Signature Date

____________________________________ _______________________________

Witness Signature Date




Action Steps
Health

> List the obstacles for each health behavior change you intend to make and a way to address them.
> Identify up to five actions that can be taken most days of each week to reach your health goal.
> To learn more about wellness and the missing vital nutrients order:

'The Common Sense Nutrition Approach to Wellness and a Better Quali... by Dr. Dan Fouts


Health Behavior Change Contract

> Complete the Behavior Change Contract and post it in a visible place where you will see it every day.
> Use the behavior change tracking forms to check your progress toward your goals.

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Have a happy and healthy day!

Marian Tschiegg, RN Marvin Tschiegg
Glyutritional Wellness Consultant Professional Health Coach
Nutraceutical Representative
Weight Management Advisor

[Backyard Getaway (Lisa)]

Bonita, you have inspired me! I have been saying (to myself) for months that I need to get back on track with my health. I keep saying next week I will start exercising, next week I will eat better. Today is the day! I printed your tracking form & contract. Thanks