In response to a client who struggled with a recent vacation she took: As for the lake house stuff, I need for you to hear this... You said, Im scared that I cant be fun or have vacations because I have such a rigid diet. You dont have a rigid diet. You have a rigid mindset. Thats a massive distinction that you need to come to terms with. Im on family vacation right now. Ive had 4 different sets of company visit us so far and none of them are health conscious. Im currently in a fat loss phase of my own training but Ive made the conscious decision to not worry about a deficit this week. Its one week. Big whoop. And trying to adhere to my calorie limits strictly would only suck the joy out of my vacation. It would be about more than not being able to enjoy tasty foods. Itd be about deviating from the pack, being on edge, etc. So Id rather compromise, slow my progress down a bit, and deviate from the adherence this week. That doesnt mean its complete nutritional destruction though. And heres why... Its MY choice. I dont feel guilty. I dont feel any need to binge out of remorse/guilt/regret. It just IS. I eat until satisfied. I enjoy the same food everyone else is enjoying. Yesterday my buddy was so full from gorging himself on the same food I was eating that he had to unbutton his pants. Did he really derive that much more joy and pleasure from the meal than me? Likely not. He just wasnt conscious/present when eating. He ate and ate and ate until it became physically painful. I see a lot of dieters do this too when they try and force rigidity into their vacations. They cant enjoy their time away because theyre walking the nutritional tight rope. Something has to give and its usually their unrealistic expectations. And when it gives, and they eat something bad, they feel a sense of failure and pure guilt. And because of these feelings, out of frustration or whatnot, they binge. Might as well go all in since I caved. Eff it! I suck but pigging out feels good. We need to be flexible not only with our diets but also with our mindsets. We cant expect to always be on. We need to adjust our approach to stay in tune with the happenings of our lives. We also need to develop the habit of what I refer to as challenging thy self. Your mind is constantly judging your behavior and environment through the lens of your preconceived beliefs. Some of these beliefs are destructive. They take your mind to places it doesnt need to go. Yet, theyll pop up and control you automatically... even flying under the radar of consciousness. So you need to get good at being in the moment, identifying these beliefs, and challenging them. To yourself or even out loud... dont be afraid to talk some smack. Wait a second. Yeah, there arent many healthy choices around me but that doesnt mean I cant stay in control. It doesnt mean I cant enjoy this meal without binging. Its not perfect but thats okay because perfect isnt real. With me, personally... seeing as how trips and vacations arent happening every single month... I CHOOSE to take a step back and enjoy everything from the people to the food. And because its MY choice... because I dont feel as though my diets holding me back against the wall while everyone else is out having fun... Im able to stay calm and guilt-free as I focus on being press and enjoyment. You speak about pressure. Remember, you have a valve that you can adjust. When you need to, dial down the pressure you place on yourself in order to maintain sanity and to avoid absolute thinking. Perfection is an illusion that robs us of our ability to stay rational and present. Pick up the pieces and move on. Learn from this.
Posted on: Tue, 19 Aug 2014 19:00:03 +0000
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