I’ve loved sweets since I was a child. I think you’re either born with a sweet tooth, or you’re not. Cookies and candy have a special place in my mind and stomach.
Sweets bring instant happiness.
You probably have a similar weak spot, bad habit, or addiction.
Throughout out lives, we’ve been learning to run towards pleasure and away from pain.
In 2020, we have a choice to mature and grow up fast for our safety’s sake. We are learning to balance pain and pleasure, and give up our normal lives.
If we have pain from these adjustments, we have to address so we don’t lose our mental health. The sobering reality is, if we choose pleasure then our physical health can suffer if we contract the Coronavirus.
The physical health is more important than mental health for immediate survival.
If we’re smart we’ve created new habits to help us adjust.
You’ve probably eliminated the idea of traveling abroad with all the hoops, bans, and uncertainty. You’ve changed your regular routine, while you’re social distancing and avoiding public gatherings.
I’ve found I needed to change my eating habits, to less sweets and cooking more wholesome foods over processed foods, where I began this year.
COVID-19 decisions permeate our everyday thoughts and actions. When we change our attitudes, we can grow and change our bad habits to better habits.
Change Your Bad Habits
I’ve learned in my own quest for healthy self-discipline, that denying yourself backfires.
It’s better to be easy on yourself and replace the bad habit with a thought about a new good habit that could take its place. The desire starts in your mind.
Blowing up that imagery allows the new habit to settle into your mind. If you can imagine yourself in the new habit, then you can do anything you set your mind to.
I see myself eating baby carrots, so now they’re in my hands.
One day when you feel good, and have grown tired for the moment of the old habit, purposefully try out the new habit.
When I’ve had enough cookies, my body is satiated and I can focus on the healthier options.
Acknowledge that you started this new habit by writing down on your calendar or in notes.
Then set a daily reminder on your calendar or phone to practice this new habit regularly. Remind yourself daily until you get in the habit. This can take one step forward and two step backwards. You could simply forget.
Be encouraged, if you’re determined to make the change, you will eventually succeed.
If you want to eat more than 3 servings of vegetables per day, make a reminder before each meal. You most likely won’t make them all, but if you get veggies in one meal per day, congratulate yourself.
You could set the bar lower, but when you set the bar higher, you aim higher and grow further.
Feeling your positive strides towards your healthy change gives you a sense of self-accomplishment.
By day 7 (or sooner) of successfully performing your new habit, you will be well on the way to a new normal habit.
If you’re someone who gets bored easily or prefers variety, you could get creative. You could find new ways to practice the new habit. I could cook up or juice carrots in many ways, pair with a vegetable medley, or purchase different carrot varieties. The possibilities are endless when you give some thought to a new desire.
If you’re trying to wean away the desire to go to social outings or gatherings, you could find a way to commemorate and be grateful for past events.
I miss all the concerts I attended in previous years, but I recorded some of the songs and it’s easy to find similar concert performances on the internet, to listen to in nostalgia. I take that one idea one step further and send recordings to the people I attended the concerts with. It’s a way to share, connect, and feel the concert again in a safe way.
It’s not exactly the same as enjoying a concert now, but when I think of what I’m giving up, I think of my mother…
As a child, she missed out of 4 years of playful freedoms during World War 2 when the island she was living on, was invaded and under Japanese occupation. That humbles me. When you can find a way to appreciate what you have, then you can change your thoughts, where all your desires begin.
—
Previously published on Medium.com
*******************************
***
If you believe in the work we are doing here at The Good Men Project and want to join our calls on a regular basis, please join us as a Premium Member, today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
Talk to you soon.
*************************
Photo credit: By frankie cordoba on Unsplash