If you have ever tried to set a hard limit on your diet and exercise regimen yet failed…. This is for you.
I am going to start off by saying first and foremost, when we try to make surface level changes like picking a restrictive diet and vowing to workout 30 minutes every morning we are typically just setting ourselves up for failure.
Why?
It’s simple.
And……not so simple.
Let’s start with the simple answer.
Humans have really complex brains. Like realllllly complex. There’s no black and white explanation to what goes on in our heads every day.
Part of this is our subconscious mind. The unconscious part of our minds that is not so “out-there”. This part of our minds and brains runs the show, in the background.
It’s like the back room of our brains.
Dictating what we think, decide, who we gravitate toward, what beliefs and values we carry.
It even decides how we view ourselves. Without us knowing consciously.
If you think you’re confused now just wait…. J/k!
The subconscious mind works together with the conscious mind. They create this perfect fusion that makes us who we are.
Our subconscious minds carry all of our programming. Values, beliefs, standards, thoughts, experiences and more. All of this up to about the age of seven is what our subconscious carries, and more of course, but the most influence comes from our early childhood experiences.
Now, our conscious mind on the other hand is the doer. The part of us that faces the world. The part of us that uses words and actions to go through life.
But the conscious mind doesn’t do that alone. No……
The conscious mind does what the subconscious communicates to it.
In terms of healthy food choices maybe the subconscious mind learned from a young age that the healthiest foods to eat are real whole foods found in their most natural form.
This person is then likely picking out meat, vegetables, eggs, fruit, nuts and seafood for meal time.
They likely do not believe that healthy food is found in a box or drive-thru.
In this perfect scenario the conscious mind then makes the food choices that support this deeply rooted belief thus gravitating towards whole foods.
Whew! Thank goodness! Not much room for illness or chronic disease here.
What about the opposite end of that spectrum?
Well, that person may not be as healthy or energetic. Maybe they suffer with a chronic disease, or several. Maybe they are carrying around extra weight and feeling bad about their self as a result.
The truth is that there are so many aspects of health, not just what we eat, what we do, the exercise we do or don’t do, medications taken.
There’s so much more beneath the surface.
The decision to improve one’s health actually starts with the way we think. It starts in our minds.
It has been proven time and time again that surface-level changes, fad diets and quick-fix style weight loss solutions lead to burnout and overwhelm which then lead to the person gaining weight back (and more).
This is a vicious cycle that ends in the person suffering an even bigger blow to their self-esteem.
And all of it can be avoided.
My friends, there is a better way. This is exactly why Cheri Sabbah Health exists.
Because there is a better way!
Let’s circle back to the power of our minds. Our minds are our greatest asset. We may as well use them to our advantage.
During the early days of the pandemic I found myself laid off from work for several months.
Not one to just sit and rot I found myself signing up for a Neuro-linguistic programming course with a company called Transform Destiny. It was something I was already really interested in learning and here was my chance!
Every day I spent at least a couple hours studying, listening to the many audios and videos. Reading the course materials. Sometimes while riding my exercise bike in my basement.
This course was entirely virtual by the way.
If you are not familiar, NLP is the study of the mind and how we can use our minds to our advantage. (In a good way).
A huge part of NLP focuses on working with the subconscious mind and how we can actually train our brain to work for us.
Bingo!!! I am all about working smarter not harder!
One of the first things I learned about training the brain are called “I am” statements. You literally just pick an “I am” statement based on what you desire to learn/achieve/create and start there.
For instance, the statement “I am becoming the healthiest version of myself”.
In what ways?
What does the healthiest version of you do every day?
What are your habits?
What kinds of foods do you eat to support your health?
How does the healthiest version of you walk through life?
What do they know to be true about themselves and their abilities?
What did you learn to become the healthiest version of you?
I think you can see where this is going.
For the most part you are taking your “I am” statement and asking yourself questions that help you gain an understanding of what it entails, looks like, feels like.
You are working through creating that version of you who has already learned/achieved/created what you wanted to.
This is also known as future-pacing in some circles.
Statements such as “I am” are the most powerful statements we can possibly make as they actually turn us into what we desire to become. We are training our brains, our subconscious minds to work for our benefit, not just run on autopilot.
If you are the kind of person who likes to journal out things that come to mind such as this I really encourage you to do so.
It has been a powerful tool for me over the years, journaling anything that is on my mind.
Friend, your mind is the most powerful and important asset you have on your journey to improving your health.
You may as well use it.
ps. Food First, my signature program goes into even more depth here helping you learn how to create your healthiest self, making lasting, meaningful change. Find it here.
All the love,
Cheri
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