Saturday, May 31, 2008
Sports & Fitness
By: Maryann Sickels
Certified Fitness Trainer
This morning the first sentence in my journal reads: "I'm not in the mood to write, but I'm doing it anyways." Then I started thinking about this statement that is tossed around daily by millions.
What exactly does it mean to "not be in the mood" for something and why do we say it so often? When I think about it in my own life, no matter how many ways I try to twist it, that statement is nothing more than an excuse. It's a final plea to try and justify my way out of some task that needs to be done.
99% of the time my kids are not in the mood to peel themselves from their cozy cocoons and trek off to school each morning. They do it anyways. I can pretty much guarantee that 99% of us aren't exactly in the mood to go to work regularly either. Yet, everyday millions of us do things that we're not in the mood to do. What drives us?
Consequences. There is a cause and effect that is continuously at work in our lives. If you don't go to work you know the negative effects it will cause. If you don't get the bills payed on time more negative effects. The short of it is we all have to do things everyday that we just plain don't feel like doing.
There are also consequences to our health if we continue to use the "not in the mood" card to put off healthy practices like regular exercise, supplements and positive food choices. These consequences may take a little more time to show up compared to others in our lives but it doesn't make them any less of a reality.
Let's try and stop categorizing consequences into categories and look at them honestly. The effects on your health are just as costly to your life as a bill that's turned in late. Putting off taking a multi vitamin is just as costly as putting off getting the oil changed in your car. Do you see where I'm going with this?
Take the next step and do what you've been putting off. Maybe you've already made changes in your lifestyle and it's time to kick it up a notch. Sign up for that new class at the gym, try that new supplement that you've been hearing about, increase the amount of fruits and vegetables you eat. You know you can do whatever you set out to do no matter what mood you're in. You do it every day. Hmmm, and to think I wasn't in the mood to write today.