Have you ever wondered which of the weekly bonuses participants consistently struggle with the most?  From our end, it is easy to see that, hands-down, it is anything connected to recognizing one's emotions or requires thinking about yourself or your situation deeper than surface level.  Whether the bonus recommends meditation, journaling or answering questions about oneself, it's a struggle.  

Now I get it, I really do.  Exercise can be physically challenging, eating nutritious food over unhealthy comfort food can be a chore, but training your MIND to think differently than you have for many years, now that is downright difficult and sometimes even scary!  Which makes it understandable as to why so many choose to opt out and avoid it all together.  But, I am completely convinced that lasting, lifestyle changes will not occur until the underlying reasons that led you to your unhealthy state are addressed.  I believe it is not just how we train our bodies, but our MINDS that allows us to push through limits in exercise, make better food choices and ultimately reach any goal we want in life! 

Let's think about this for a moment.  Yeah, yeah, yeah I know you don't want to, but humor me here.  EVERYTHING we do begins in our mind.  Everything.  Is there one thing you can think of that you do every day that doesn't require a thought or a series of thought processes? Nope.  Not a one.  Now, admittedly, some things may have become more automatic to us than others, such as driving the same way to work everyday, but those tasks still require our minds and thinking at some level to do them.

I believe the ultimate success in any weight loss, healthy-living journey will be determined by how well we train the mind.  It will involve taking a good look at past and current thinking patterns and working to develop healthier, happier habits for our minds.  Today, I'm sharing 5 tips to help you to begin training your mind to be healthier, happier and more successful in your journey!

Seek Possibilities Over Excuses

The definition of excuse given on Google.

verb

Common excuses:  

* It's too hard to make changes

* I'm too busy and I don't have time to take care of myself

* Life is really hectic right now

* I just can't "get into it"

* I'll start on Monday...next month...or next year

* I'm too old

* I'm not sure I can commit
* I might fail

* I might succeed and then what?

Every one of those is an EXCUSE and not a good reason, so ditch it!  When an excuse is made, it is essentially an attempt to get out of the responsibilities associated with following through with dreams, goals, and aspirations.  Let's allow ourselves to ditch the "excuses" and see the possibilities!  Each time you find yourself about to use one of your well-worn excuses, STOP, take responsibility and rephrase it to something you CAN do and start making a plan.  

Change How You Speak to Yourself

Much like the "excuses" tip, this tip is about dumping the negative words and phrases from our speech and incorporating positive, uplifting and hopeful words.  Try switching this phrase:   "I'm so fat.  I'm just not strong enough to keep up.  Why do I always give up?"  To this one:  "I'm working on improving myself.  I'm getting stronger everyday.  I can be consistent when life is difficult."  Try it out for a week or so and just see if you don't recognize a difference in how you look at life!

Stop Putting Limits on What You Can Achieve

I think Valerie covered this tip wonderfully in a recent post.  The real bottom line here is if you put a limit on your abilities, you will never, ever achieve more.  Allow yourself to be open enough to accept the possibilities of your greatness and you will surprise yourself!

Give Yourself a Pep Talk Daily

Wake up and generate some excitement to your day!  Set your alarm to wake you with a peppy beat, look in the mirror and tell yourself 'I can and I WILL", take a moment to recognize your greatness!  Yes, YOU, are full of greatness!  If you're not sure of a way to get this done, check out this girl's example.  She's just the cutest and I aspire to be more like her!

Be GRATEFUL Each and Every Day

Look around you and look at that you have.  Recognize your temporal comforts, but be sure to consider your own personal gifts, talents and positive attributes.  Think carefully about your family, friends and co-workers.  I guarantee you will find in one of these groups that you will have had at least one, if not countless interactions worthy of gratitude.

Now go beyond just recognizing these things you have to be grateful for and express your feelings of gratitude.  Express those feelings to your God, your family, your friends, your neighbor, the stranger who shows kindness, the child who made you smile...all those who have contributed to the good in your life.  Recognizing and expressing sincere gratitude on a daily basis can create a cycle of happiness unlike any other I've experienced.  Gratitude can soften the hearts of those receiving and expressing it.  It can open the minds to recognize more and more things to be grateful for.  It allows us to see beyond another's mistakes and faults.  It allows us to feel contentment.  It allows us to feel hope and many more positive feelings.

These are only 5 tips for creating happier habits.  I don't pretend to believe that following these 5 tips are all that's required to live happier lives.  There are many factors specific to an individual's personal situation.  I do know that these are a good start and have been very helpful to me in overcoming my own past feelings of self-doubt, negativity, discontentment and depression and I hope that upon practice, you also find them to be helpful to you!