How's it going? And I don't ask that in a casual way, like we're passing each other in a hallway, running by too quickly to actually hear the answer. How are you really doing?
We are two full weeks into 2022 and the feedback I'm getting from people is that these new healthy habits are starting to get HARD. Dang It!
What's up with that? Just two weeks ago we were filled with renewed energy and vision and so hopeful that 2022 would be the year we finally _____ (got into shape, quit sugar, ran that marathon, got our family healthy, didn't hate wearing a bathing suit to the beach).
First of all, let me explain why things are getting hard. As you are working towards new goals and making positive changes in your life, you have to develop new habits.
Imagine you have a new house located in the middle of a tall, grassy field. The first time you drive home you get in your big 4x4 truck and forge a road to the front door of the house. Day after day you drive in the same path... back and forth, back and forth... and over time the grooves from the tires of your truck wear down the grass and create a path. Eventually, the tires from your truck fit perfectly in the smooth lines you've created after driving the same path over and over again.
Now imagine that you decide to create a new path to the house in the middle of the field, a better path, and you're excited because this new path is going to be AWESOME. You get in your truck and set out to create this new path. The road is bumpy and the ride is not comfortable. Um, you didn't sign up for this to be so difficult!
Over time you lose your enthusiasm and you begin to think that the old path wasn't so bad after all. If you cease to be diligent, your brain goes on auto-pilot and you find yourself back on that old road again. The path is so smooth, so familiar, and doesn't feel so awkward or uncomfortable.
The same goes for creating new habits. It's hard work for our brain to make a new path when the default one is familiar and convenient. At the beginning you are excited and committed, but you can only get so far on that energy. It's hard to wake up early to go to the gym when your default has been to sleep in. It's hard to come home and cook dinner after a long day when your default has been to swing by the drive-thru. Your brain has developed a path and now you want to take a bumpy detour.
You may start to tell yourself things like, "This whole 'healthy lifestyle' just isn't for me" or "I just can't get my act together" or you may spiral into the negative and say, "I'm destined to be like this forever, I'll never make a change."
Here we are two weeks into January and you may be feeling the strain of plowing through those tall grasses, forging new paths and creating new habits. It *should* feel hard! When you are creating real and lasting change, your body and mind are initially going to rebel. From an evolutionary standpoint we want to take the path of least resistance!
If you want to see a change, then you need to make a change. Don't get discouraged when things start to feel hard. You are on the verge of a breakthrough! Keep the faith and stay the course. It will all be worth it when you reach your goals, I promise.
Over the next few weeks I'm going to help equip you with some of my favorite tools for making new habits stick! For now, know that this feeling of awkwardness is temporary and that it will get better. I've got your back and I'm right there with you, stretching and growing and forging new paths.
