Last night as I was lying on my bed about to switch off light and sleep, I was thinking how it has been close to 2 weeks that I have missed my work out. It all started as we left for our Easter break and then just couldn’t bounce back. I am sure as you read this, you would also have had instances in life where you started something and then after being committed to it for sometime, a small break would have put you off track. A point to mention over here is that I have been religiously working out in some form or other for the last 7 or 8 years and it is definitely above the 21 days habit forming pattern.
When I was lost in my thoughts, I also wondered if I , being a coach for women Hormonal Imbalances can fall off track, it is pretty much natural for others too. And then is when this ’21 Days Habit Forming Pattern’ struck me where either we have heard it time and again or have told someone – DO IT FOR 21 DAYS and YOU WILL DO IT FOREVER, really ? The fact is that, any habit that you inculcate will need effort to stick too. We as human beings look for ways , means and excuses of not wanting to do something and my excuse after the Easter break was – I am busy with other things which are more important. Now, if I analyse a bit on what those so called ‘other things‘ are I wasn’t able to put forth anything on paper and that dawned realization on me about just making lame excuse. I have also usually noticed that when it comes to my workout routine I tend to give myself excuses of missing it rather than sticking to it. Where as if there are any deadlines in office, anything to do with family or even a casual word that I would have told a friend – I will stick to it. Why is that so ? Am I telling myself that I am not as important as other people, things and tasks are ? Am I putting myself last ? or am I just giving myself some excuse for not wanting to do it because it involves physical effort ?
We are all in such a time where we are struggling to stay connected physically with each other and have learnt the art of virtual connections. While we stay up-to-date with everything around the world, we forget that we are our first priority. Agree ? We give ourselves several reasons why we want to put ourselves last – family, kids, friends, office, other commitments, no time, too tired etc and when realisation dawn in, it is usually too late. Today, allow me to give you few steps that will enable you to prioritise yourself –
- No Time : This is the most common I have heard my clients say when I ask them to give themselves 1 hour of ‘ME’ time every day. This ‘no time‘ is something that comes naturally from us as we have heard everyone say that. Where as, how about identifying time for yourself ? How can you do that ? For a week list down all activities that you do from when you wake up till you hit bed (but Poornima, I have NO TIME. aha ! we are doing this to identify that slot, my dear). As you do this, you will see that there are activities that can either be clubbed together or can be done 2 or 3 times a week rather than everyday. For example : If you love doing laundry everyday and that consumes 1 to 1.5 hours, why not do it 3 times a week ? Again, if you so like having fresh food and hence chop veggies every morning – How about chopping them in bulk and freezing? If you are worried about losing nutritional value – be rest assured that blanched and chopped veggies nutritional value stays intact for 6 months when frozen.
- Too Busy : Really ? Do we want to introspect on what is keeping us so busy ? Remember, we are talking about prioritising our self here and that means we make it a point to go off that I am Busy mindset. In fact, I tell my clients to rather call it productive than busy. Try doing it – tell yourself or someone who asked you how your day was by answering : it was productive and see how your mind responds. It has kind of been induced in us to use the statement ‘I am busy‘ as we have time and again heard most of them say it. Sit down peacefully and ask yourself, what has kept me productive today and if it is worth being so in comparison to your health or well-being ? You will find your answer.
- My Family Is Very Demanding : You see, I am a mum of 2 young kids aged 9 and 4.5. I work full time as well and have understood that if I don’t take care of myself, my family will suffer too. Just imagine, if you fall sick and are having multiple visits to your doc (I had those visits for almost an year), wouldn’t your family suffer with you ? If you feel lethargic and drained out most of the time, how does that resonate with your family? Unfortunately owing to our culture and ethnicity, we have learnt to put ourselves last and it is high time we change that perspective within us first !
The above 3 points listed are things you might be aware off as it is no rocket science. However, being aware is different and implementing is different. We are aware of several things or at least we think so, but for us to achieve a desired result it is must to implement that awareness.