At work over the last couple of years, we’ve been working with an amazing coach. This woman has worked at the United Nations, mediated in the Middle East between two completely opposite religious sects, written books and done other impressive things too numerous to mention. In one of our earliest sessions, she explained how every day before she gets out of bed she chooses her attitude. That resonated with me.
Every day, pretty much every action we take is preceded by choice. Sometimes we choose appropriately, but lots of times – not so much. Sometimes we let reaction jump ahead of whatever we might have done if we’d taken time to think about our choices and then acted. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. As a compulsive overeater, I have a long history of acting without conscious thought when it comes to food. I’ll obliterate my ability to correctly choose, act too fast. I can’t count the number of times that I’ve eaten something and had it all the way down in my stomach before it even registered that I wasn’t hungry, didn’t particularly want the food, and had hardly realized that I’d eaten it in the first place.
I hate that feeling of not being in control of my choices. Hate it, while at the time time it feels like losing control is in and of itself another choice. I mentioned yesterday that it’s felt like I’ve floundered a lot in recent weeks. I was determined to get back on track today.
Not following my food plan or falling back into old compulsive behaviors are not choices that I wish to make. Today before I got out of bed, I revisited the lessons from our coach. I told myself that I chose to have a solid, good, productive day and to follow my food plan. This mentally and emotionally set me up for success and I rode it through all day long. I stuck to my food plan, even though I walked out of the house and forgot the yogurt I’d planned to eat for lunch. Luckily, a good friend at work had just purchased a bunch of sliced turkey breast and offered me some. So, I made the choice to adjust and eat healthy, instead of using it as an excuse to run to the lunch cart and buy something that would have taken me too far off my day’s path.
It’s 10:34 p.m. I stayed on my food plan all day with the emphasis on protein, low on carbs and fat. I also got in plenty of fluids. It’s always a great reinforcement to me when staying on point physically improves and boosts me mentally and emotionally. A day like today can power me through.
I have a lot of tomorrows ahead of me. I can let them slide and be mediocre, or I can choose to make them as great as possible.
Guess which I plan to choose?
Weighty Matters 
So excited and proud for you Mary Stella! You’re an inspiration ;o) Each day lately, I, too, have been telling myself to respond to the world positively, no matter the (not-so-minor) irritations that keep cropping up. Then that I’ll stick to the anti-oxident-rich foods and teas and suppliments that are helping me get healthy again after a long run of health issues…
It’s all in the attitude, isn’t it ;o)
Go, Mary Stella, go!