Accentuate the Positive

How many times do we knock ourselves down because we didn't do as much exercise as we did last week? Because we had an extra 2 drinks at the party on Saturday? Or, because we may have had a few extras over and above our allotted exchanges? It is so easy to focus on what we did wrong. Often when we have this mindset, it makes giving up seem easier. Oh well, I blew the weekend, so what's the point?

The point is...remember how good you felt last week when you did all of that exercise. Remember how you felt at the other party you went to where you drank water and diet soft drinks all night. Remember how good you felt when you followed the plan exactly - and even had fewer carbs one day. It is easy to forget how good you felt when you were doing those things.

If that is not enough for you, what if you start to investigate your behavior further? What if you decide that you are going to accentuate the positive? Okay, so I didn't exercise 4 times this week, but I did exercise twice. Twice is twice as much as I used to do. Okay, so I had 2 extra glasses of wine at the party, but I used to have 4 or 5. Alright, maybe I went over my exchanges of carbs for the day by one or two, but remember when I used to eat a whole pizza for supper? It is so easy to focus on the negative instead of the positive. Somebody told me today that they were disappointed that they had gained 2 lbs at their weigh in, but neglected to tell me that they had lost 45lbs since they started. When they told me about the 45lbs, they felt better than they did the minute before. After overhearing this, someone else then also changed their outlook on the fact that they had stayed the same since their last weigh in. They both looked at the big picture. Imagine how different we could perceive things if we only accentuated the positive.

Somebody once told me that I should try asking myself what I did well today. If you ask the question in that way, there is no choice but to realize what you have accomplished. We need to spend less time feeling guilty about what we have not done or what we did not do. Turn the thought I cannot believe I had 2 pieces of pizza into, at least I had 2 pieces of pizza instead of the 4 that I used to eat. Sometimes, it is amazing how your attitude changes when you can come up with even just one thing that you did today that was better than how you have done it the past.

This might all seem obvious and it is often easier said than done. Sometimes, it is even necessary for someone else to point this out to you. All I can say is try to be aware. By being aware, you would be surprised how much easier it is to focus on the good and not the bad. Even just one good thing can make all of the difference, not just to you, but maybe even to someone else.

I would like to thank everyone for a wonderful summer and I wish you all the best, as I start my Bachelor of Education at Ottawa University. Hopefully, our paths will cross again sometime soon.

Take care,

Heather