Do you ever know that you need to do something but just flat out don’t want to do it?
Ugh. That’s my story about getting healthy.
I started the year with a broken wrist, which made even mild exercise painful and hard. Then, as I’ve healed, quite honestly, I’ve fought the fear of injury because my wrist still isn’t strong. So, exercise? I’ve avoided it!
And then, you add COVID-19 quarantine into the mix. Is it only me, or have you too overeaten during this “shelter-in-place, put-food-in-the-face” season of life?
I threw all my good eating and health habits out the window. The result is my jeans are bigger, my muscles are flabbier, and I’m less limber. I’m just generally frustrated with how I feel, how I look, and what I let happen.
So, here I am inviting you behind the scenes. I’m getting some help from David Nurse. He’s an NBA Life Optimization Coach and a best-selling author.
He’s got a brand new book out called Pivot & Go: The 29-Day Blueprint to Redefine and Achieve Your Success, and I talked to him about it for the 4:13 Podcast. His full and completely excellent episode will be available in November. But, in the meantime, I’m letting you in on how he’s helping me with my “getting healthy” goal. Talk about accountability, huh!?
I’ll pop in a few more times behind the scenes so you can keep up with my progress … and, I admit, that does make me a little nervous! But, I’m willing to do this in front of you with David, hoping that it may help you if you’re in a similar quandary. If you are, we can do this!
So, go behind the scenes with me and listen to my coaching conversation with David.
3 Life-Coaching Tools for Healthier Living
- Set specific goals. David told me that I need to determine my goals and be very, super specific about them. I shared with him my three goals: lose weight, exercise, and eat less sugar. So he helped me be more specific by asking me these goal-related questions: How much weight do you want to lose? How much do you want to exercise? By when do you want to accomplish these goals?
So, I set 10 pounds as my weight loss goal. While I could lose more, I wanted a goal that feels doable and less daunting. As far as exercising, my goal is three 20 minute workouts per week. And, as far as when I wanted to accomplish it, I answered, “Yesterday!” Nope, not the right answer! So, I went with three months from now instead.
David told me that I need to write my specific goals down and see them three times a day. He also said I should put them in a place that’s with me all day—so, I’ve set three reminders on my iPhone that will interrupt me and announce my goals. My phone or Apple Watch are always with me.
He also suggested that I add my workouts in my calendar as if they were business meetings that I can’t skip. And, he didn’t scuff at my measly 20 minutes. But, he did say we’d add five minutes each week to my workout time. This guy is used to working with NBA stars. Now he’s dealing with a 50-something blind woman who admits she wants to do the minimum requirements. Bless him! He’s a patient man.
Oh, and when it comes to eating less sugar—which isn’t what I want to do, but definitely what I need to do—David suggested that I have an after-dinner treat only. He says that’s what he does! So, if it works for him, I know it’ll work for me too.
- Practice mental dictatorship. The second tool David gave me is called mental dictatorship, and it helps my mind be in charge more than my emotions or body. He outlines it in detail in his book. To sum it up, David explained that it takes 17 seconds until our minds overcome what we think we can do.
So, say I hop on my treadmill or bike, thinking, “I really don’t feel like doing this today!” David says it only takes the mind 17 seconds of actually doing for my mind to kick into that mental dictatorship, and then I can get through it. He says if I start and last those 17 seconds, I’ll have a 99 percent chance of actually finishing it.
Oh my! Friend, if I can’t sit on a bike seat and pedal or walk on a treadmill for at least 17 seconds, somebody needs to kick me off this 4:13 Podcast! I can do all things through Christ, right? Oh, brother! 17 seconds … here I go.
- Set up a success-facilitating environment. Lastly, David told me that my environment has to help me succeed. I need to make sure my surroundings are full of triggers that facilitate success. When I do this, it makes this not seem like a burden, but instead like my awesome routine.
So, I needed to do some mindful rearranging. For me, this meant moving tempting food so they’re hard to reach. My jar of Ghirardelli chocolate chips that’s sitting smack-dab in the middle of the kitchen island had to go to the top shelf of the pantry.
David also suggested that I put my laptop on my treadmill. What a great idea! I got this laptop treadmill desk to help me pull this off. He also encouraged me to get stretch bands and a Yoga mat and keep them by my bed. This way, I can stretch first thing in the morning. Honesty alert … I haven’t done this yet!
There you have it! My goals and how David suggested I reach them. I plan to check in with David in three months—and, between now and then, do personal daily tracking and check-ins. I hope you’ll join me on my weight-loss journey and be encouraged in your own!
Related Resources
More from David Nurse
- Visit David’s website
- Pivot & Go: The 29-Day Blueprint to Redefine and Achieve Your Success
- Follow David on Twitter and Instagram
Links Mentioned in This Episode
If you’re here from Can I Still Believe? With Jeremy & Adrienne Camp [Episode 103] …
