When it’s time to be honest.

So honesty is the best policy when it comes to your health. Honesty with yourself if the first step. I’ll start….

I crave sweets and salty crap food when I’m stressed out. I intentionally don’t buy it at the grocery store because I’m going to ‘be good.’ Then I make a second trip to the grocery and buy just crap food because I know that no one can see what I buy or eat in the privacy of my own home.

Living alone can be a great thing. I love that I don’t have to share the bathroom, worry about who ate my leftovers in the fridge, and I can watch whatever I want on tv. But there are some major drawbacks to living alone. And for me the biggest one is accountability. Sure it’s one thing to have accountability partners on social media, weight loss group check-ins and such but it is a different story if what you say you do doesn’t match what you really do in the privacy of your own home.

And this past week started the season for high calorie goodies, candy, lots of parties and alcohol. I hope that many of you were able to resist the temptations of leftover Halloween candy from your kiddos or from the discount prices at the convenient stores. I however was not immune to the hype and cravings.

I’m human. I have cravings. I have weaknesses. I have stress and eat emotionally. I need help.

Many of you may now be thinking, ‘how can she be a health coach and eat crap food?’ or ‘why should I listen/learn from her if she can’t fix herself?’ I hear ya and I’ve honestly thought the same thing. Why should you? Since no one was around to watch me eat the Halloween candy I didn’t have to answer to anyone but myself. I can justify my behavior when it comes to food really well. I’ve had years of practice. But I say to you that you should listen and learn from me because I’m like you. As  a health coach I don’t have super powers; I do however have knowledge and compassion.

Today I woke up ready to get some work done on my mindset. Here are some things that I have to remind myself about today and everyday:

·      It’s ok if you mess up. It’s a learning moment. When we beat ourselves up for the fall (or purposeful swan dive) off the wagon of healthfulness it’s a defeating process. A single moment or decision doesn’t define our whole lives. We need to recognize that it happened, jot down some notes about why it happened (i.e. what were we feeling or thinking at the time) and generate a plan to move forward.

·      Identify triggers for relapse. I know that sounds like a substance abuse counseling theme and it is. Because it works. And it takes hard work. Figuring out what situations or feelings trigger our lapse in being healthy can be the ticket to overcoming those triggers. I’ve overcome a few and have since recognized some others. Always a work in progress.

·      Find support. I know! I just said that accountability is only good for so much. I didn’t say that it wasn’t good. So with that in mind find some likeminded individuals and share with them your goals and intentions. The more you share about it and talk about it the more likely you are to keep it in the forefront of your mind. It’s like talking about your new crush all the time, you focus on it and put energy into it.

·      Admit when you mess up. I know this is hard for me. I like to present that I’ve got my sh!t together even when I don’t. Sometimes that can be helpful; but most recently that’s been damaging to my overall wellness. If we fail to recognize or admit when we mess up then we won’t be willing to learn from it. If we don’t learn from it, we will repeat it. If we repeat it, the behaviors get more ingrained in us and become habits. See the cycle?

There is a solution and I can help. We can move through this learning process together. If you are ready to be honest with yourself and look under the hood of your mindset, then let’s chat.