Repetition

A lot of times, keeping a healthy lifestyle is not easy. I know most of us don't even want to think about what we should eat, or what exercise we should do. We get caught up in life's daily demands, work and family and simply forget to focus on ourselves.These thoughts however lead me to wonder how athletes get so good at what they do; or how some students simply seem to excel in their exams. Take a runner or swimmer for example. The formula is pretty simple. They show up at the track or pool and do the workout. Day after day after day. There is no guarantee they will get a gold medal in the future, or set a personal best, but they persist. They show up, they do the workouts and they do not question the difficulty or the time away from their family or friends.The same formula for the successful student. Usually they study every night and don't put off their studies till the night before the exam. They create a habit for success by doing the same thing, day after day after day.Most of us make eating good food, smaller portions, less snacking, way more difficult than it really is. The main difference from the athlete and the student is, that they don't lose sight of their goal. We lose sight very quickly and stop even trying to think of why we wanted to lose weight and keep it off in the first place. Think about it. If you have joint pain, and poor mobility or diabetes, what if you simply developed the habit of not snacking after dinner. With that alone, in a few months you might be 20 pounds lighter and feeling more flexible or happy that you aren't on so many pills.Don't procrastinate. Begin those habits now. If you fall off track for a couple of days, then get back on track. Don't lose sight of why you want to lose weight, and develop those good repetitious habits that will get you there. After a while you will do this automatically, you won't be struggling with those emotions that lead to unnecessary snacking.The same goes for activity. If you go for a walk tonight, you won't see the benefits right away, but what if you walked daily for the next 6 months along with reducing some snacking? The results would be there. Having said that, you need your reason to go out the door. Less joint pain? More energy? Fitting in to smaller clothes? What is it that will get you to do some sort of activity daily?Excuses of fatigue, no time, no energy, too busy, are simply that. Excuses. This is your health. Take ownership of it. No pill will ever surpass the beneficial effects of healthy eating, regular activity, proper sleep and methods of reducing stress. So, put your IPad down, get away from the smartphone or T.V., and move. Don't bring any tempting snacks into the house. They are unnecessary and unhealthy.Good health requires daily good habits. Repetition of these good habits leads to a healthier and happier you. Don't put off what needs to be done. Start today, repeat tomorrow, and repeat the next day until you are doing what needs to be done without conflict.You can do it. Just keep trying.Dr. Doug