Little victories deserve a little reward.
For me that usually involved a food or beverage treat.
Hard day at work? I'll pick up a smoothie on the way home.
Big project with school? I'll pop some buttery popcorn to eat while I study and type.
Finally recovered from the flu? Time for that steak since I didn't have much of an appetite for a few days.
These small treats were a way to pat myself on the back for being persistent, keeping focused and reaching goals and milestones for myself. Until I reached my mid-thirties. Yep....if you figured out where I'm leading with this then you are correct.
My constant treating myself to keep my spirits up was starting to have health consequences that were not on my original plan of things that I now needed to "fix". But that's OK! Life happens, plans change, people and relationships evolve and now I need to find a new way to still reward myself for small victories while not doing determinant to my health.
Maybe you're also in the same boat as me and your looking for new healthy ways to have a better lifestyle. Or maybe its not your weight, its a different habit you picked up that is now causing issues. I read somewhere that the coping strategies you used to help you get through difficult times don't serve you well forever.
For example I had a friend who has some bad memories of times in high school and in her early career with leadership roles. For a while she refused to take any leadership position and instead focused being a great team player. This worked for her for years. But now all her skills, talents, and wealth of experience are being wasted. She complains of younger, less experienced managers but instead of accepting or applying for leadership, management or director roles she allowed that learned behavior to prevent her from growing.
Take a page from my book. Put down the complacency, put down the small rewards you've given yourself as motivation and start finding new paths. Old dogs learn new tricks all the time. Today I'm learning to treat myself with long baths. Tomorrow I'll give my friend support and links to guides on how to be a good leader.
Regardless of what your reward system or coping skill was let's show them what we can do by moving forward!
Comments