Without a doubt, the most powerful way to make important changes in our lives is to spend time identifying our values and priorities and then adjust them based on whether they move us towards our goals or keep us from reaching them.
The more we analyze and honor our own values and priorities, the easier it is to modify them and elevate their status so that we can give them the importance in our lives that they deserve.
Everyone of us has a set of priorities that we base our daily actions on. They might involve family, career, relationships, socializing with friends, leisure activities and so on. However, because of our modern busy schedules that keep us running throughout the day, most of us are not consciously aware of what is truly important to us, what our true priorities are.
And, that’s a problem. Because, until we DO know our priorities, it’s difficult to change the status quo.
In order to discover your true priorities, it’s important you make a written list of them, from your highest to your lowest priority in your current day. Be sure and be honest and look at your daily actions, because they tell you exactly what your priorities are right now.
Now, take a look at what you’ve written. This type of feedback reveals to you the activities that take priority in your life. If you’re being authentic and honest, it’s easy to see where time is being frittered away on activities that are not that important.
Where does your health and fitness goals fit into your list? Do they rank high enough for you to be taking daily action on them?
Truth is…
There are two primary behaviors that are vital towards keeping your body healthy and well along with losing stubborn excess weight and keeping off.
Not surprisingly, those things are:
Nutrient dense eating
Proper strength training exercise
Both of these things must be honored, adhered to, and placed at the top of our priority list if we want to experience stellar health.
For better or worse, or whether we consciously realize it or not, our food and exercise related values and priorities effectively run our lives.
For example:
If you currently find yourself overweight, there’s a very good chance that not enough value has been placed on lifestyle behaviors that would keep you slim and healthy. If this were not true, these type of behaviors would already be integrated into your daily life and you would not find yourself in a dangerous overweight situation in the first place.
Somewhere along the way, your health and fitness priorities took a serious hit. And, that’s what needs to change.
If you struggle to formulate a sensible plan for eating and exercise (and, stick with it), it’s one of the first sign that your motivation and drive are seriously lacking. Sadly, you have fallen into the same trap that so many people do by simply not placing enough value on their health.
Health is Number One
When we begin making conscious choices that nourish and strengthen us, we automatically go up a few notches on our totem pole of priorities. This, in turn, pumps up our motivation to lose weight.
Our focus needs to be us. We need to feed ourselves well and exercise our bodies because we love and care what happens to “us” not because someone else wants us to do it or because its the trend. That type of attitude is what causes people to quit the gym after a few sessions or stop exercising after a few weeks.
The better we care for and nurture ourselves, the higher our motivations levels are, and soon, we become unstoppable.
Be aware though that shifting away from old ingrained patterns of behavior takes effort and patience. It won’t happen overnight, but as time goes on, fragile new actions soon become who you are as opposed to just something you do.
Often we don’t recognize the negative consequences of living with lower than optimal health or excess body fat because the changes are so small and subtle. Make no mistake though, they are adding up in every cell and tissue of your body.
Keep motivating and assisting yourself during your weight loss journey by continually reminding yourself why your health is now such a high priority for you. As you make your transition keep visualizing what you will look and feel like if you do not take the actions required of you and you continue to neglect your health.
Focus on how excited you’ll feel about how you are going to look and feel in just a few short weeks/months from now.
It’s time to take command of your life…emotionally, physically and mentally.
“Reclaim Your Longevity” can help you do just that…
For more tools and resources from Carolyn Hansen to assist you in attaining your health and fitness goals and achieving the success you desire in life, please visit:
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