Creating Change

Change happens, and it often happens whether you want it to or not—and it’s not always for the best—but it can be. Change also happens when we make it happen. Yet, so many of us are too often afraid to create change because we are afraid to fail. So, if you’ve lost confidence in your inner ability to create change—this post is for you!

Do you take your power or inspiration from external sources or from within yourself? Do you read and look at ads and commercials and think to yourself, “This is what I need; this is what I have to do; this is how I should look; this is who I want to be?” This is important, because you know yourself better than anyone else, and you are the one who should be in charge of what you want to change—not an outside source who tells you what and how you should do or be. It takes some thought, and it takes some time, and it takes resolve, but the results stay with you because you are the one who is in charge. And, you are the only one who can make it happen.

We know repeated behaviors eventually turn into habits. And we know improving willpower long-term requires commitment (drawing on our inner ability). We also know as individuals we never stay the same. But, to create change, we have to expand our zones of comfort. We have to develop those behaviors that turn into habits, and then we have to change them—it’s the habit of changing habits that builds inner confidence (that little, or loud voice that says, “Yes you can do this”).

Now, let’s take change and our ability to change, and apply it to our personal health and wellness (because after all, that’s what this Blog is about). 

Mindful choices made each day will result in steady changes leading to sustainable health and wellness. The effect is cumulative—and what we do—or don’t do, determines our success and our overall wellness. Imagine thinking of laying a foundation of wellness as you would think of breathing—in other words, not as a one-time choice but an automatic response and action. So, take a deep breath. Your values—and actions—speak to what is most important to you in life. Where is your focus? We suggest that rather than focusing on all the reasons for why not, or why you will fail, focus instead on all the reasons you will succeed. Keep in mind those things you do well and use those accomplishments to foster a sense of achievement.

Belief is the common element in all forms of achievement. When you believe in your ability to achieve, you are actually setting a goal, and your mind and actions take you where you need to go to reach that goal. When faced with a problem or situation you want to change, by creating change for yourself, you become the solution. The rewards are endless. That inner power can influence not only your health and wellness, but also those pieces in your life you might not even be aware you want or need to change. 

The takeaway—What do you think would happen if you put yourself in charge when it comes down to looking at your ability to create change? Hmm  . . . You might just become your own lifeline to your health and wellness decisions and choices.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Have you ever planted a garden? Did you add composted manure or fertilizer to give your veggies or flowers a boost. If you watered and nurtured and tended your plants, you probably had a successful harvest. You were probably pleased with your efforts. And, yes, a successful garden takes work. And, here’s the parallel.

If we want to successfully address the overwhelming epidemics of obesity, type 2 diabetes, other chronic diseases, and childhood obesity, we should be looking at what we put into our bodies and what we do with our bodies rather than continually questioning how we pay for the mess into which we’ve gotten ourselves. It’s a matter of being mindful, watchful and proactive—from the beginning. We see study after study and plan after plan telling us how our healthcare dollars will be spent dealing with chronic disease, but we’re not looking closely enough at where the problem originates—with each of us. We’re not tending our gardens.

We already know the majority of us (67 percent) eat too much—and too much of what we consume is mainly composed of chemicals rather than real food. The result is high calorie content lacking in nutritional value—and too much of it. We’ve achieved the really neat trick of being overfed and undernourished, all at the same time.

Studies show that the foods we choose to eat on a daily basis contribute 80 percent to whether we will develop type 2 diabetes, heart disease or cancer. Studies also show that 87.5 percent of our health care claims are due to individual lifestyle choices. We are still and ill.

We already know too, that the majority of us lead what is considered a sedentary lifestyle. In fact, nearly half of American adults report they are not active at all. We spend our time sitting in cars, at desks and in front of screens. This means all those empty, nutritionally void calories we take in aren’t going anywhere. But they sure add up. So much so that Americans are now 4.5 billion pounds overweight.

We know the result. It’s staring us in the face. We know the cause. We also know our collective current condition and associated costs are unsustainable. And we already know each one of us can do something about it. The answer is right there in the choices we each make every day—in how we plant, nurture and tend our gardens. 

How many more expensive studies do we need to tell us what we already know? What will it take for us to start making those lifestyle choices that put the focus where it belongs, where it begins?

Knock - Knock

What do you do with the opportunities that come knocking on your door? More importantly, do you recognize them as opportunities? The thing about opportunity is it’s always there, but it isn’t always obvious.

In many ways, wellness is an opportunity.  This is exactly why we are LoneStartNow—You alone must make a start, and there’s no better time than now. An unhealthy lifestyle is the primary factor in the six leading causes of death in the United States – heart disease, cancer, stroke, respiratory diseases, accidents, and diabetes – which collectively account for over 70 percent of all deaths.

Your wellness opportunity is waiting for you to take charge of it and make the most of it. And, you have everything you need to do just that. The only variable that counts is you—what you’re willing to believe you can accomplish. Keep in mind, your goal is not to define the healthy lifestyle you’re after by your “wants,” but rather by what you believe. This is “the why” of what wellness means to each of us individually. Inside each of us is a person capable of achieving great things—at least great to us. And, that’s where it all starts. We are a result of the choices we make every day. 

We can change our lives for the better by taking responsibility for our choices. This is what we call the Power of Self. If you look at truly productive individuals, a common trait emerges. They don’t point out why things can’t be done—they create opportunities to achieve their goals. 

Tapping in to the power of self means exerting control over your life and your lifestyle behaviors. Easier said than done? Not really. All things positive, or negative, start from within. It’s how we choose to treat them that takes them where they go, and make us who we are.

So the next time a wellness opportunity comes knocking, keep in mind that positive change can bring immense self-satisfaction—you just have to know how to go about it. Most of us are faced with doing the best we can with what we know. When we know better, we do better. 

We’re talking about what we can do to improve and sustain our long-term health and wellness. And yes, we can all benefit from healthier behaviors, and we can all be part of the healthcare solution rather than part of the problem. Given the choice—the opportunity—which would you choose?

Tempest in a Teapot

Or maybe you’re more familiar with the old English version, a Storm in a Teacup. Whatever you want to call it, what we’re really talking about is simply keeping things in perspective.

Are you one of the many who are trying to make positive lifestyle changes? Are you one of the many that along the way hits a setback? Do you treat that setback as a guide or a brake? (If you’re at all familiar with LoneStart Wellness you already know one of our tenets is to treat setbacks as guides, not brakes.)  Do you tend to take a setback and make what actually is a small problem seem far greater than it really is, blowing it completely out of proportion? Congratulations. You’ve just created a Tempest in a Teapot.

Take a minute and think about the biggest issue or problem you have. The bigger, badder, baddest, and most terrible ... the better. Now, blow it up. Make it even bigger, badder and more terrible. Can you feel your blood pressure going up? Now try to picture that tornado from The Wizard of Oz, the one that whirled Dorothy away from Kansas. Picture your big, bad problem spinning around and around in that tornado—and now, shrink it all down and put it all into a little, delicate, white teacup. That little white teacup is sitting on a little white saucer and there’s a little wisp of steam—the remains of the storm.

This is the proverbial “storm in a teacup,” or “tempest in a teapot,” and it’s all about perspective. It’s also about reframing that experience. When you miss your goal and experience a setback, think about what happens when you look at it instead in a positive (reframed) perspective. And, as you’re putting your setback in perspective, by reframing it you are also creating flexibility in how you think about it. Reframing lets you look at a negative outcome as a positive learning experience.

You’ll be able to come up with a number of effective reframing statements and thoughts, but here are a few to get you started—my personal all-time favorite: It could be worse. A few more: It’s only a small part of something bigger and more important; It’s a challenge, not a problem; You have everything you need, here and now; What is, is. It’s only bad if you compare it to something else; It’s exactly as you created it; There’s an important lesson here.

Now, what happens when you begin to think of these reframing statements as changes in attitude? If you look at what happens in life as a series of learning experiences, you will always learn something new, and that’s good news. So, here’s a thought. Consider that, the greater the setback, the greater the learning experience, and then, you’re back on track in better shape than before. You’ve altered your perception of what occurred and created a more positive outcome—without actually changing the circumstances. It’s not an excuse, but it changes the experience, and it’s a way to move forward.  Isn’t that what we’re after?

The Delicious Life

The delicious, delectable life. It’s what we’re after, but for most of us, life is busy. We find ourselves focused on a specific project, specific roles, all the “have to’s.” And, now there’s more pressure than ever for each of us to take an even greater level of responsibility for our individual health and well-being. There’s a lot of balancing going on here, and in some cases, it results in frustration, stress and avoidance. For many of us, it also results in overeating, sleep deprivation, and a sedentary lifestyle.

While we’re doing all this balancing, most of us are looking for ways to address the mental, physical, emotional and spiritual demands in our lives—in other words, those dimensions that make us a whole person. Here’s where it’s a good idea to take a step back and take in the “helicopter view,”  otherwise known as “the big picture.” It’s this view or picture that can actually help us identify those areas that really need our attention, and those that really don’t.

From an overall wellness perspective, this means recognizing what we can change and what we can’t. Can we (or would we) change the roles we play in life—husband / wife,  father / mother, community leader, friend, employer / employee, team member / coach? Can we change what’s important to us—career, family, friends, financial freedom, education, physical challenge, attitude? Can we  (will we) change how active we are, what we choose to eat, or how much we choose to eat? And, can we change how we combine these roles and choices to achieve a more ideal life and wellness balance? This is where a wellness perspective comes in. 

For most of us there are areas in our lives that probably aren’t getting the right amount of attention, and others where we make more of an effort than needed. It’s up to each of us to adjust, to decide what we don’t have to do, and what we should do more of. 

We usually talk about wellness in terms of making positive lifestyle choices, modest yet meaningful changes, finding opportunities to put our bodies in motion. That’s all true. But here’s a thought . . . What if we also think about wellness as finding all those ways to make life—and our personal wellness, delicious, in the greatest sense of the word?  

Dancing with Self-Deception

Remember the classic story of self-deception, The Emperor’s New Clothes?  Remember that one lone voice of reason? That voice is yours. And what does this have to do with wellness and positive lifestyle behavior changes? Read on . . .

Self-deception is rampant when it comes to human affairs, and this absolutely includes making lifestyle behavior changes. But this is not necessarily a bad thing. One should never underestimate the power of a positive illusion. It might be just what we need to get us through the day.  Enhanced motivation (a polite term for self-deception) can actually enable us to do better as we face challenges than the outcomes realized by people with a more realistic view of their abilities. The popular shorthand for this is, “fake it till you make it.”

Now, let’s confuse the issue a little more. Self-deception is actually somewhat contradictory.  We all probably know how to go about deceiving someone else (of course, we would never do such a thing). But, in the case of self-deception, the deceiver and the deceived are the same person. So, do you believe what you know is false? And, if you know it’s false, how do you believe it?

Consider that our perception of the world around us is certainly biased and that for better or worse, we can convince ourselves of things that are not true. We look at the world through filters that make our decisions more palatable. We also impose our beliefs on what we see and what we hope to accomplish. We don’t just experience situations as they are, but also according to our beliefs about how we want them to be. And, it is our beliefs that in turn influence what we experience.

This is true of many of the events we experience on a daily basis—they’re ambiguous and open to interpretation. Our own individual interpretation. It’s that interpretation that will move us down that road to wellness—because that’s what we want it to do, and because it’s what we believe it will do.

And, this is where the dancing comes in. We can dance around the “I can do this, I can’t do this, I think I can, I know I can’t” all day long. But at the end of the day, it’s up to us to decide who we want to be and what we want to accomplish—and then do it.

So, the big question here is do you want to change certain lifestyle behaviors? Do you believe you can? And, even if you’re afraid you can’t, what we’re saying is, go for it anyway. Tell yourself yes you can, and then tell yourself over and over until you believe it.