Why don't we take better care of ourselves?

We get haircuts every 6 weeks, change the filter in our water system at every red light, change the oil every 3,000 miles, wash our tires, and rotate our tires. We take good care of our own things

Is it so hard to get out of bed and go for a walk? Or should I go to the gym? Or hire a health professional?

What prevents us from taking better care of ourselves?

In fact, in some ways, it's not our fault.

Part of this is because our brains are wired that way. Our brains are predictable and always dependent on efficiency. So, any behavior we create for ourselves, like being locked behind a desk for 8 hours a day, is a pattern that doesn't follow. The more we practice them (40-50+ hours per week x how many years?), the deeper the pattern becomes, and thus harder to change.

Another simple law of physics: a body at rest remains at rest unless acted upon by an external force. Our brain doesn't use energy if it doesn't need it. External forces can be many things: a mean dog chasing us down the street, a wedding or family reunion or an upcoming vacation, or bad news from the doctor. Things that are considered necessary for survival are things that will be done.

But there is more.

People always tell stories, usually to themselves. But is it true? When it comes to improving our health and fitness, most of the stories are not. They take the form of questions as if they are threatening and threatening. We know the answer, but ask: If I look better, will I lose all the friends I don't make? Do I deserve success? What will people think of me? What if I improve my health but my partner doesn't? What happened to our relationship? When I change my appearance, I get a lot of attention. How do? Will I enjoy it? What kind of people are these new fans? Why did they ignore me before? Biggest: What if I drink? What if I fail?

But aside from the scary stuff, getting that kind of help is a unique process. First of all, fitness is a service, but work is not given to you or to you. You have to do it yourself. Also, you need to be clear about what you need and know how to get it or know that you can improve. Our health can decline. Most of our chronic conditions (heart disease, type 2, high blood pressure) must have 12-15 years of bad choices to see a doctor. It doesn't give you an "external" force to keep you running "until it's too late".

If you've tried to get fit and healthy in the past, but relapsed, that failure makes it harder to try again, even though it's not your fault (and it's usually not—actually normal. It takes an average of 7 tries to succeed).

None of this means we can not change. That means it's harder than. When we're young, we take our strength, fitness, and health for granted because our choices don't count over the years and there's nothing wrong with them. But sooner or later, we have to take action if we choose a good age instead of rot. If you're ready to embrace health and fitness, get off your meds, and get stronger, now is the time to start. Understand that this is a lifetime commitment. Work on training your brain with new patterns. It's hard at first, but it gets easier. To protect myself, I always remember a one-line prayer I heard years ago: "I hope I don't die."

Change your story. Ask yourself: Who is it now? Who will you be in 5 years? The human brain is a goal-seeking system. If you don't have a goal, you have no place for a goal. Focus on change and it will happen. If you want help changing your mind, call/text (404) 435-6367. This is what we do!