Be BAD...Without Losing Control of Your Health
Continuing on in the final part of this series, HOW you eat is almost as important as what you eat... today I want to talk about self-sabotage.
Today we’re going to something really fun and playful. Sometimes self-sabotage simply means we need to be BAD.
B.A.D. is an acronym that stands for:
B = Break free from your routine
A = Act naughty – doesn’t mean doing something dangerous… just something like calling in sick when you’re not sick… something like that
D = Do something fun and crazy
Sometimes, we just want to be BAD. I call this: Rebellious Inner Child Syndrome. It’s a way of rebelling against outside authority.
Most people don’t like being told what to do so we have our own mechanisms in place to rebel. Some of these mechanisms may be outdated, dysfunctional or self-destructive.
As a health-conscious adult, we may want to revise our strategy while still having the experience of being naughty.
It is natural that when we hear, “Don’t do that” or “Don’t eat that,” we want to rebel. What age does that kind of behavior remind you of? Mmmmm. Sometimes we need to cater to that inner child. Today - I want you to laugh at yourself a bit. Let's play! Can you create a list of naughty/fun – kind of bad – crazy stuff that you can do to break free from your routine?
Some examples might include playing hooky from everything… from work, your phone, your email… Or making a prank phone call? How about calling your mom or dad and playing an early April fools joke? What about a date or a girl’s night? Do you still date your husband? Implementing something new into your life and upending your regular routine will do wonders for your soul. It makes the mundane rules feel like... "Wait, this isn't so bad... I can do this!"
It’s just breaking free from welllll, "I’ve got alllll this work to do…"
Again, when we break free from our routine it really makes our minds believe, "you know what? This isn’t so bad. I’ve been working so hard. I’ve been following the rules and following rules can sometimes feel like, UGH."
But when you break free from routine, there’s pleasure in it. And our mind loves pleasure, and that keeps us going and that is awesome. So I encourage you to think about a few things you can add to your menu that will help you feel like you've had a little break in the action. A menu of fun. A menu of BAD.
When I work with my 90-day clients we face self-sabotage head on. You can call it resistance. You can call it sabotage.
Whatever - it's there and it is real. For everyone. Today, I want to work on the kind of sabotage that creates our food habits...
So let's just think about this...
There you are about to go to the refrigerator or the cupboard for a snack. (And remember, there’s no judgment here, I want you to simply get curious.) What are you feeling or what are you really craving? Are you about to eat for nourishment? OR are you looking to fulfill something else?
Try filling in this statement:
“I feel ___________when _____________. I want _________________.”
(For example... "I feel bored at night when I'm by myself. I want some excitement.")
So instead of standing at the fridge looking for snacks - what I really want is some excitement...
This is the cool part. This is where we create a little menu for ourselves so we can be fulfilled with what we're actually looking for, instead of food. And we call this our nourishment menu. Because we're feeding what actually needs to be nourished. This is a little different than the menu of fun because these are specifically fulfilling cravings for pleasure, relaxation, adventure and/or sweetness in your life. It starts with recognizing that you deserve to experience pleasure. You deserve to relax. You deserve to have adventures! You deserve sweetness.
Here's a little peek into my nourishment menu:
- Massage
- Yoga
- Dance
- Sauna
- Pedicure
- Chiropractor or Energy Work
- Facial
- Getting my hair done
- House cleaning
- Warm clothes out of the dryer
Now you have two supportive rather than destructive “menus”—one when your inner rebellious child is craving naughtiness, and the other when you are craving pleasure and satisfaction.
So we create an action plan for you over this week – because I want it to be fun… I still want you to focus on all the great things that you’re doing. Your water intake, your breathing, your chewing, your honoring your hunger and fullness… you’re making great choices for yourself.
And at the same time, you’re getting that workout in too… right?
Do you feel like in your week ahead you could try something new? Maybe a new hike or a new class at the gym? Maybe it's just adding in 30 minutes of walking each morning... or an online class in your living room?
If you were to look at this week ahead, what days and times could you do this new thing?
And is there anyone who can hold you accountable?
And do you feel like there are any obstacles that could get in the way of you doing this new thing?
Let me know in the comments. Who is your accountability partner that will hold you to your goals and action steps this week?
xoxo,
AAA
