The #1 Key to Sustainable Change
How?
It’s the #1 question that I ask myself whenever I explore my deepest desires for the future.
And it’s also the #1 question that I get asked by clients who want to change their bodies, stop bingeing, stop hating themselves, and start eating like a normal person again.
And even though what we hope to get is a step-by-step roadmap with a neat little list of all of the things that you must do in order to achieve your desired outcome, for most things in life there is no list to tick off.
There just can’t be.
Because we are all so different and unique in our circumstances, our self-awareness, and our beliefs and values that what works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for another.
(Funny, this is starting to sound a lot like my Diets Don’t Work post.)
But there is one incredibly crucial element of the “how” that absolutely determines the sustainability of the change you are creating AND whether or not you will actually feel GOOD when you get there.
It is the motivation for your transformation: Are you motivated by fear or by love?
It’s that simple, and in this scenario there is no gray area.
If you embark on a new diet and workout plan because you hate your body, you feel disgusting and you are scared that you will never get a boyfriend if you are fat, then you are motivated by fear.
And though you might see some short-term success, you are setting yourself up to yo-yo right back to where you were because you are ignoring the root cause of wanting to implement that diet and workout plan: you don’t feel good enough.
As long as you are chasing something external to make you feel good enough, even if you achieve it you won’t be happy.
However, if you start that exact same nutrition and workout plan because you took stock of how you take care of your body and you realized that it does not align with how you want to feel, with your values, and with treating yourself like a goddess, then you are choosing from love.
You are choosing to do something differently because you know that you deserve better and you can access more energy, more vibrancy and a better quality of life when you choose things that nourish, strengthen and uplift you.
Those are the results that are going to be sustainable because you aren’t seeing yourself as broken or a problem that needs to be fixed. You are recognizing yourself as a whole, complete, valuable person, and also acknowledging that a change in nutrition and exercise would add value and vibrancy to your life.
The very first step in creating any sort of change is radical honesty.
If you are being honest, from where are you choosing in your life right now? Fear or love?