So when I name this key factor,
Don't just automatically assume you know what I'm going to say,
Because I have a feeling that's not the case.
So the factor falls under the category of mindset.
But the mindset I'm talking about has nothing to do with willpower.
It really doesn't have to do anything about seeing yourself as thin and healthy and fit and the end result and all that.
The real game changer,
The difference maker with this aspect of mindset is I'm changing my identity.
The way that I think of myself as it relates to health and fitness,
Because it is something I've always struggled with.
It didn't come easy for me.
I was always kind of fighting an internal and external battle with it.
And I finally figured out why.
And it has everything to do with self identity.
So I'll just quickly share something with you that will help explain why this has been an issue for me.
So when I was a kid,
I mean,
Back in like grade school,
I was really lousy at sports.
I couldn't kick a ball,
Catch a ball,
Throw a ball,
Anything to do with balls.
I just was not very good with it.
That was kind of awkward and it just wasn't happening for me.
But as a result,
I got made fun of.
I got picked on and even bullied because I wasn't a normal boy who could do all these athletic things.
And it really affected me.
I was kind of antisocial.
I ended up being really shy and I had a stutter for a number of years when I was younger.
And so the light at the end of the tunnel with that is I ended up gravitating toward things that I had more control over,
Which was the arts.
And I started getting into music and writing and arts and other things related to that,
Which became a huge part of my life.
So it was a blessing.
However,
All these decades,
I've had this image of myself who's someone who's not coordinated,
Not athletic,
Not really a fit person who is into exercise and all that stuff.
And so whenever I tried to implement new habits,
I was always fighting this battle that was at odds with my identity,
How I thought of myself.
So just to hammer home the idea here,
I'm gonna share a couple of quotes.
But one quote is,
We all act consistently with who we believe we are.
Think about that.
Here's another one.
The strongest force is the need to remain consistent with how we see ourselves.
So I always saw myself as someone who was not very athletic,
Not very physical.
Exercise probably unknowingly reminded me of those times when I was made fun of as a kid.
Even as an adult,
There's programming running underneath the surface that's influencing me in that way.
And that's the reason why you may have struggled because a lot of times we're focused on the behavior.
Okay,
I'm gonna eat this way and I'm gonna move my body this way.
I'm gonna force myself to get up and run or walk or whatever the thing is.
And you're focused on the behaviors and that's great because we all need to develop new habits to be able to improve our lives,
Especially in this arena of health and wellness.
But when you're trying to develop new habits against a backdrop of a belief that doesn't match it of a self image that doesn't support it,
You're always going to struggle.
That's why I struggle.
I think really that's at the crux of why so many people only have temporary successes with weight loss and health and they fall back into the old patterns because they don't change their self identity.
So for me and a lot of other people,
It took years,
It took decades to build up this self identity of not being someone who makes healthy choices,
Who is physically active.
So you're not gonna change that overnight,
But I have made some immense progress in just the last few weeks of just changing my attitude instead of saying,
Oh,
I gotta force myself to go and walk today because if I don't,
I'm not the type of person that.
.
.
No,
I'm saying I'm a healthy person,
Therefore this is what I do.
So that is where affirmations come into this.
I say this to myself every morning.
I even listen to my own voice on some of my health affirmations.
I am a healthy person.
My body loves physical activity.
So I'm slowly but surely reinforcing,
Rewiring my brain and my self identity to be the type of person that I know I want to be and I have the ability to become.
But until you really own that identity and think of yourself,
I'm a healthy person,
Therefore I make healthy choices,
Of course I'm gonna behave this way.
It becomes less of a struggle and something that you actually look forward to.
Again,
It takes repeatedly reminding yourself of who you are so that you begin acting in a manner that's consistent with your new identity.
At first,
It might feel a little awkward,
Like,
Oh,
I'm just an imposter pretending to be this,
But no,
You stick with it and over time,
You own it,
You become that.
So this has been a huge shift for me and it's the reason why I think I'm gonna stick with this and make it a lifestyle.
I hope you realize the power of changing your identity.
We always act in a manner that's consistent with who we think we are,
Who we know we are,
And you can alter that and change it so that it supports you instead of always creating this friction.