Doc's (Occasional) Rambles ™: How To Get That New Body You Want: Change Bad Habits Into Good Ones

Journey Gym Habit

We are all creatures of habit. Oh sure, we like to think we are spontaneous, and perhaps your routine is not quite as static as your neighbor's boring life. Forget the neighbor. To borrow from Mary Schmich's 1997 Chicago Tribune article,

Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself.

My friend, Bob Dorste, and I have talked many times about the power of our habits. Over coffee one morning we shared with each other what we were doing to re-invent our lives. Not just our bodies. We confessed to each other that we had allowed ourselves to slip into habits that were not healthy. That was about a year ago; by that time I had lost about 80 pounds. Bob had slimmed down, too. It was fun to talk about the change of lifestyle and the reward that had come from replacing old habits with new ones. And there is the secret key to my weight loss: YOU CAN'T JUST QUIT A HABIT; YOU HAVE TO REPLACE IT WITH A NEW ONE.
In fact, you need to be smart about how you replace it. Why do you eat that donut in the middle of the afternoon? Are you just thirsty, but sugar tastes better? Maybe you just need to get away from your computer so you go visit a co-worker who always has a stash of chocolate. Could it be that your body is telling you it wants some stimulation, but you think that the caffeine in a "diet" soda would give it a burst of energy?
And just why is it that you don't walk to the corner grocery store? Why is it that you drive around the parking lot looking for the spot closest to the store entrance?
One of the blogs I like to read is called "Success Begins Today." Last week I read John Richardson's post about How To Change a Bad Habit Into a Good One. Maybe you will like some of his tips. Maybe you won't. But I can tell you that I like my new habits. I eat more than I did when I was fat. But I eat right and I exercise more and I have fun doing it. My reward is that I like the way I look and the energy that I have. And Cheryl, TLOML*, likes the new husband because he looks a whole lot like the husband she married 31 years ago. In fact, two days ago she told my niece that I look better than when we got married.
Come on and join me. Develop the habit of eating right and exercising. You will really be glad you did.

Eat Right! Exercise! Get Plenty of Rest! It's that simple!

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*By the way, TLOML = The Love Of My Life = Cheryl DeVore = Prettiest Woman in the World