As it’s the New Year lots of people will looking to begin some kind of lifestyle overhaul and lose some weight.
When we do this the first thing we tend to do is look at what’s coming next.
Am I better off joining the gym, going running, getting a bike, cutting out my favourite foods, giving up alcohol, etc, etc.
But starting with the end result often ends up with a solution built on soft foundations.
If you have read any of my blogs before, you know that I pride myself on ‘Treating Symptoms Not Causes’. This applies to Chronic Pain and it also applies just as much here, to Lifestyle Change.
2021 is my 11th January in the Health & Fitness industry and in the last decade I have seen a lot of people get started on their health goals. Some have managed to carry them right through to completion and some have struggled and not hit their targets.
What I have learned in the last decade is that what we need to do first when we start to make lifestyle changes, is to look at the factors that brought us to the point where we wanted to make changes.
If we don’t do this then we can spend our time trying to outrun issues that created the situation we are in.
Let’s face it, most people don’t live an unhealthy lifestyle because they are lazy.
They are overweight or unfit because they are knackered, lethargic and don’t feel like they have 2 seconds to catch their breath, never mind head to the gym for a 60 minute workout.
But January seems to be the month where we take a deep breath and sacrifice ourselves at the altar of burpees, running, spin, circuits and the rest; hoping that we can stay dedicated long enough to actually see some results before we crash and burn.
Or all of our lifestyle habits that have evolved naturally in response to our work, family, commitments, location; finally catch up to us.
Make this year different.
Try and understand the reasons behind your current lifestyle and the state of your health.
If you can do this then you can identify factors that you can improve.
For example, if you constantly find yourself snacking, ask yourself if you are actually hungry or if this is just a habit that has developed. Or maybe you are using food and snacks as a distraction from something that is stressing you, such as work, coursework, commitments; whatever it might be.
If you can understand that the habit of snacking goes against your goals and only exists to placate another need, then you can find another way to deal with that situation.
It will take time and it will take practice, but a new, more positive habit can be formed to replace the old one.
If you can start to apply that logic to all areas. You can create a platform for real, lasting change.
I’m going to continue this theme during the next few blogs, if you have any particular questions or if you have anything you would like me to cover please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Chris Adams
Adfitness Body Mechanic