Stand Your Ground; Own Your Choices!
Each day, you make countless choices that shape your life, your health, and your lifestyle success. In a world saturated with chemicals, pharmaceuticals, hyper-processed foods, and environmental pollutants, you stand alone, navigating a landscape riddled with potential hazards.
Every decision you've made, from the foods you eat to the lifestyle you’ve led, has ultimately determined the trajectory of your health. These choices have either leaned towards dependency on external healthcare systems or towards a path of self-empowerment, where you've taken charge of your well-being. You’ve become the master of your fate rather than a puppet of circumstance.
Sadly, I often encounter people who express frustration with their health, facing illness or disease. In these moments, I try to remind them that while their current struggles are real, there are always obstacles that can be overcome on the path to improved well-being. I'm going to spell them out here, and hopefully, they’ll inspire you, the reader, to make informed health decisions:
The Pull Of The Familiar: Our brains are wired for efficiency. Habits, even unhealthy ones, become deeply ingrained neural pathways. Much like a familiar hiking trail becomes easier to traverse with each passing footstep, these neural pathways become increasingly ingrained with repetition. But conscious choice requires effort and willpower, and that disrupts our automatic routines. It's like forging a new trail through dense undergrowth – it’s challenging and energy-intensive. That’s why it’s so hard to break free from the pull of familiar. Our brains naturally resist change, preferring the well-trodden paths of least resistance. To succeed, you must become familiar with the unfamiliar.
Source: How to Break a Bad Habit (and Replace It With a Good One, James Clear, 19 Mar. 2023
Fear Of The Unknown: Making a deliberate choice is another big hurdle because it means stepping outside your comfort zone. For example, when faced with the prospect of changing your diet, or starting a new exercise routine, the uncertainty of the outcome may trigger anxiety and resistance, leading to inaction and self-sabotage. To overcome this fear you have to acknowledge its presence and challenge negative thought patterns. There will always be a degree of uncertainty, but the more comfortable you become with it, the more likely it is that you engage in health-promoting behaviors.
Source: Journal of Behavioral Medicine: A Meta-Analytic Review" by Carleton et al. (2012).
Decision Fatigue: Our modern world bombards us with choices, from what we ingest (whole versus processed foods, pills versus restrictive diet) to the overload of information vying for our attention (social media, Netflix, video games, e-mail, etc.) While many common choices are necessary, much of today’s technology keeps us so busy that we can become unbalanced, leading to a state of mental exhaustion, known as decision fatigue. As our mental energy depletes, we become unable to resist temptation, and our actions become impulsive in everything from food choices to skipping workouts or neglecting self-care. Ditch what’s unnecessary; do what is needful.
Source: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology)
Lack Of Willpower: Although willpower is a dirty word today, research firmly suggests that lack of it is key to struggles with health-related issues. That’s because willpower involves the ability to control impulses and resist temptations. If you lack willpower, start to develop it. Much like your muscles require effort to grow, so does willpower. Some techniques involve setting clear goals, planning specific task details, reducing temptations, seeking accountability, tracking progress and using a reward system. Work hard to gain the reward of willpower.
Source 1: The Willpower Instinct" by Kelly McGonigal
Source 2: Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69-119.
No Easy Way Out
If you choose the path of least resistance, the one that keeps you nestled in your comfort zone, you'll likely remain unhealthy and frustrated, potentially gaining weight or succumbing to illness. There will always be those who promise quick fixes and shortcuts, enticing you away from the challenging route. However, their promises are hollow. In essence, if you fail to transform your habits through conscious choices, your life may require less effort, but it will ultimately yield disappointing results.
If you believe you live in a world of choice, then you must regard your life as a product of your own decisions. That’s the difficult path, but ultimately the one with staggering rewards. You have to be ready to educate yourself in the laws of health, in what choices affect you in the most beneficial way, in what gives a quality of life that is dynamic and full of energy and vitality. Remember:
It’s easier to eat pizza than to go to the gym.
It’s easier to turn to ice cream rather than people for support.
It’s easier to say, “I give up,” than to say, “I can do it.”
Millions take the easy way out by making the wrong health choices every day. What about you?
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