Behavior and Mindfulness

How To Kill Your Motivation

Today I’m here to tell you to watch out for these two surefire ways to kill your motivation to eat healthy.

MOTIVATION KILLER #1

The first motivation killer is what I call “Compare And Despair”.

This is where you walk into a room and immediately compare your body to everyone else’s. If you don’t feel good about yourself, or if you don’t think that you “stack up” well against other people, it’s all too easy to fall into a downward self-esteem spiral that triggers shame and emotional eating.

Here’s what happens:

You compare yourself to other people, either what they look like or what they’re eating.
You start to “Should” yourself — “I SHOULD look a certain way,” or “I SHOULD be eating like these thin people.”
SHOULDs lead to SHAME, and shame leads to emotional medicating — often binge eating or excessive alcohol.

MOTIVATION KILLER #2

Version 2 is called “Chameleon Eating” — Eating food that you know is no good for you just because someone around you is doing it.

Chameleon Eating is another version of SHOULD behavior. “I SHOULD eat like this person, because then I’ll ‘fit in’ and they’ll like me”

“I SHOULD eat dessert too, because if I don’t they’ll think I’m no fun.”

THE SOLUTION

The way to stop giving in to your reactions to your imaginary “should”s is to
figure out what you really need at that moment.

If you’re seeking companionship and understanding, sugar can’t give you that.

If you want to feel confident and attractive, bad eating won’t deliver.

If you want to feel like you’ve done something good for your body today, then do something good for you.

Notice that you’re comparing.
Take a deep breath and find what you really need at that moment.
Decide what’s best for you, and do that instead of comparison shopping.

When you pause for a moment before giving in to comparing thoughts, it’s much easier to listen to your own body, and to understand what it is that you really need at that moment.