Remembering Your “Why”

A few years ago I wrote an article titled, “Discovering Your Why,” about the importance of uncovering your deeper motivations for starting new habits.  As we brace for the colder weather and the potential of more COVID-related restrictions, it is more important than ever to stay motivated when it comes to our health and fitness goals.

This past year has caused chaos in most of our lives; if you feel like any semblance of a healthy routine is missing from your life and you can’t seem to shake the feeling that you are in a rut, you are definitely not alone.  

Since the nationwide (and nearly global) shutdown earlier this year, all of our daily habits have been upended to some extent- and as we all know, we consider ourselves fortunate if we have managed to stay working and healthy during this time.  What would normally be baseline considerations that we had taken for granted (go to work, come home, no one gets sick and no is afraid of contracting a deadly virus- those types of previously normal, routine expectations) are now gone, and we find ourselves having to get reoriented to our new surroundings. 

 A lot of us have experienced feelings of guilt, knowing that we perhaps “should” be practicing the healthy behaviors that were once a part of our daily routines; however because we are all working through varying levels of stress and anxiety, we are naturally reaching for the things and behaviors that make us feel better- and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.  Conserving energy, self-soothing and turning more inward are totally natural and normal reactions to the stress that we have been experiencing over this past year.  That constant stress (even if it is subconscious) produces elevated levels of the hormone cortisol.  Often referred to as the “stress hormone,” cortisol can increase cravings for high-sugar foods and encourages the body to retain and store fat.  Couple an increase in cortisol with stress-related fatigue, and you have a cycle of stress, fatigue, and cravings for sugary foods that can feel impossible to break free from.

So if your goal is to get moving and feeling better- or even if it is your objective to simply have goals again- how do you dust yourself off and get back up after being down for the past 8 months?

My answer to clients who are struggling to stay motivated: remember why you started.  When I meet with a new client for the first time, the question I always ask them is, why?  Why are you seeking out health and fitness advice at this time in your life?  With so many people constantly telling us what we “should” be doing it can be difficult to remember our own motivations for wanting to improve our health habits.  There are so many loud voices telling us what to do that it is difficult to drown out all of that noise and listen to our own inner selves.   

Creating real, sustainable change begins by getting to know and understand your own core values.  

Being preached to by profit-driven network marketing sales people about powders and supplements only distracts us from listening to and recognizing what is actually valuable to us.  Take a moment to consider the activities and people which mean the most to you.  Is it necessarily important for you to compare yourself and try to achieve the same aesthetic as the Instagram model who is selling some protein powder?  We don’t know what that model is doing to achieve their aesthetic: maybe they have a severely dysfunctional relationship with food and they’re struggling with disordered eating, or perhaps they have an effortless balance of exercise and eating that works perfectly for them and aligns well with their beliefs and values- who knows!  What works well to make one person feel great about their health and their body may not necessarily work as well for another.  We must all do the work to identify our underlying beliefs and values so that we can create a meaningful lifestyle of healthy habits that support our core values system. 

Instead of trying to transplant someone else’s values and habits onto our lifestyles,  we can instead create sustainable changes by forming habits that work according to what we value as important to us and our lives.  Any behavior change will stick for the long run if we modify our behavior according to our personal values, beliefs, and lifestyle preferences.  

This year has taught all of us that nothing is certain in life and that any routine must be flexible enough to roll with the punches life will inevitably throw our way.  2020 has also allowed many of us to evaluate the areas of our lives that need changing: what is truly important to us when everything (work outside of the home, going to the gym, going out and socializing, traveling) is restricted and all we are left with is our core values?  

Maybe we needed to slow down and get quiet to be able to hear our inner voices speaking, telling us what is really important to us has been here all along.  Our health, our families, our relationships with others, finding meaning in our work- all of these things are becoming clearer when we strip away all of the outside noise.  So, when you get right down to it, what is important to you?  Why is creating a healthy routine meaningful to you?  Start by answering these questions to yourself, and add in the activities that support the answers to those questions.  Through a process of trial and error, you will learn what works best for you and take those tools with you throughout the rest of your life.  

There are no guarantees in life; however if you can get to the root of what is most important to you, you can build a life full of happiness and health that is tailor-made to weather almost any circumstance.  

“Storms make trees take deeper roots.” -Dolly Parton