How to motivate yourself to eat well.
How does motivation work?
I think when we expect ourselves to feel motivated all the time we are disappointed when we aren't. The first thing you have to understand about motivation is that it is a fleeting thing. All those people you follow on social media that are achieving near impossible feats 24/7 don't feel amazing all the time.
So if you’re googling how to eat better everyday, you’re missing the point.
No one can eat perfectly every day.
You're seeing a part of their lives they want to show you. Me included. I feel no need to go into detail about how much I want to sob when I have no idea how to upload homeschool work on to google class room, I just pretend I know what I'm doing so my kids don't catch on.
I love chocolate and chips, I really do.
Heres another thing, I have spent all last week eating A LOT of chocolate and chips because I haven't felt motivated to care about what I eat. Sure, I eat pretty well most of the time but I've really cared less this week because it's been a tough one. Just ask my husband how many times he's caught me raiding our cabinets and eating things straight out the packet. I just give him the look that says "I dare you to judge me" and he sheepishly walks off.
Why am I telling you all this? Because I feel like we all have unrealistic expectations about health and fitness. The absurdity behind the belief that in order to be fit you have to feel motivated All. The. Time.
What are we, super human?
Covid 19, lockdown, homeschool and staying fit is supposed to be easily achieved without feeling a little like you're losing your minds??
Allow yourself to feel all the things you want to feel, eat all the foods you want to eat and stop worrying about regressing because feeling bad about feeling bad isn’t going to get you anywhere in life, never mind fit. Why punish yourself when you can be doing something about it.
You are not meant to eat healthy all the time.
Eat the damn donut
The next time you feel like eating a donut, eat the damn donut. Don’t feel bad about, just eat it, walk away and don’t think about it. Worrying about it isn’t going to get you closer to your goals. Instead, say to yourself “I took a much needed break from moving towards my goal and now I’m ready to go again”.
I’m not saying its going to be easy, it takes practice, but what I do know is this, feeling bad about your food choices is not just impractical, its damaging to your mental health. Let yourself take a break when you need it, haven’t we all been through enough in the last 12 months?
So if you wanted some healthy eating tips, here’s a friendly reminder that you can eat what you want. Just be mindful and enjoy the food. Stop when you’re full and eat when you’re hungry.
You might not be feeling motivated to change right now and that’s ok. Start small. Make a list. That’s something. Then go through your list, and slowly start to cross off the tasks, one by one. Next thing you know, you’ll be on your way to achieving those goals you set.
Happy Monday folks!
x
