Summary: Why are we the way we are? Why do we accept the unacceptable, and not except what is acceptable? Mistakes, failures, setbacks are all acceptable. what is not acceptable is quitting but we seem to accept quitting because it stops our failures. “We can’t fail if we don’t try.” But that’s false, We only fail when we don’t try.” This episode was inspired by my youngest daughter Jessica. She kept asking me “Why?” Have you ever played the “Why?” Game? Drives you crazy, but that is where the answers are. Why are you in the condition you are in? Why do you eat the way you do? Why don’t you like to exercise? Why do we do the things we do? And if we answer all our why questions honestly then we can then make a plan to correct the why. Why do we always try that new diet that promises a large weight loss in a short amount of time? So we can lose the weight and go back to our old lifestyle. You mean the old lifestyle that got you in this condition in the 1st place? Does that make sense? No it doesn’t We need to totally reinvent ourselves. How long will this take? A month? Six months? A Year? 5 Years? I don’t know about you, but this is how I lost weight in the past. I would pick a diet plan and start exercising like a madman. I would just start cold turkey. Restrict my calorie intake, change the way I ate, and added a exercise routine my body was not use to handling. Boy isn’t that a recipe for success or what? The reason we are all in the condition we are in is because of our lifestyle and the habits and rituals we have. So basic logic dictates, if our habits and rituals are the cause of our condition or disease, then recovery will only come through changing those habits and rituals. My Lifestyle before: Jumped out of bed at the last possible moment and got ready for work. No time to make a healthy breakfast, but there was a Dunkin Donuts on the way to work that I just had enough time to swing in and get a large coffee with cream and sugar and a cinnamon raisin bagel, toasted, with cream cheese. Or sometimes I would have my Bagel with butter. Or sometimes I couldn’t decide so I would order both. If I went to McDonald’s then my order was 2 Sausage McMuffins with egg a hash brown and a medium coke because I hate McDonald’s coffee. Lunch was fast food or at a diner. My area have some of the best Diner’s in the world. And Dinner was fast food because I didn’t feel like cooking. By the time I returned home I was exhausted. I would plop in front of the TV and mindlessly watch anything remotely interesting and even shows that were not. Right before bed I would eat ice cream or anything with sugar and refined carbs. I would repeat that same habit or ritual everyday. Ingesting large quantities of food that were high in sugar, fat, and refined carbs and expending no energy by exercising. My job at the time was an office job so I was basically sedentary. Anyone still wondering why I was 10 pounds away from 500 pounds? So this is where the why comes into the picture. The why’s give you the answers to the How. Old Habit: Poor Eating Why don’t you eat a healthier breakfast? Because I don’t have time. Why? Because I don’t get up early enough. Why? Because I’m tired. Why? Because I don’t go to bed early enough. Bingo! New Habit: Go to bed earlier, get up earlier, make and eat a healthier breakfast and pack a healthier lunch. I can do this exercise with every issue I have. And every issue about an issue. Exercise: Exercise is not a habit yet. Why? I am not a fan of exercising. I try to exercise 3 times a week but something always stops me. Why? Because I don’t make it a priority. Why? Because it is an unpleasant activity. Plus it’s boring Why? Because it creates uncomfort and pain. Why? Pain due to previous injuries. I can drill down until I can make a plan and create a habit where exercise is not an unpleasant activity. And that could take some time.
