They say repeating an action consistently over a three week time period will subconsciously establish a routine. Well I am into my sixth week of my twelve week transformation and I am certainly noticing a shift in my actions and mindset. I have consistently made progress in my endurance and distance in my outdoor trail running and I have been using the Vidadish pre-portioning containers which have made my food choices a lot easier to manage, prepare and take with me. Now I am not going to say it has been a piece of cake, mmmm cake, just kidding. There definitely have been bumps and obstacles so far in my diet and my exercise journey. Losing track of time, not slotting enough time to exercise or breathe for that matter and more significantly, not prepping my healthy food choices ahead of time, have all put mini detours and bumps to me sailing along my new path successfully. These mini bumps have given me great pause and reflection on how I associate myself to food and exercise.
I have always associated food as a reward, a treat to be savored in sin, not a necessary fuel used to energize my body. On the flip side, I have always associated exercise as a form of punishment or another form of work; I mean it is called a workout right.
These past few weeks, I have really tried to say present and be in the moment. When I notice myself slipping back into old familiar habits of collapsing on the couch or indulging in that second or third piece of decadent dessert, I pause and ask myself how will this action benefit or enrich my life either physically or emotionally? If it doesn't then it isn't the right choice for the me I want to be today.
One of the cool aspects of this 12 week transformation program is the weekly calls to write in our personal journals. For this sixth week we were asked to write about what was the biggest turning point in your life and how did this memory contribute to the path you have chosen in life? This topic is significant for me; my biggest turning point was when I was severely bullied in grade 2. I was swarmed and taunted, called names, pushed, rocks and food were thrown at me by the school ground mob that engulfed me. As you can imagine I was terrified. At that moment I decided to live my life in a small way, live under the radar, if I go unnoticed then I can’t be hurt right? Wrong, I believe it was Marianne Williamson who wrote:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our” own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
So at this time in my life I am consciously deciding to live my life in a large, empowering way not only to lift myself up but possibly to lift those around me up through my positive, healthy way of life I am choosing to live now in the present.
How are YOU choosing to live your “biggest” life right now?
