There are certain things we love to do and there are certain things we despise doing. Understanding that we are driven by rewards can allow you to search deep for multiple rewards and help you push through those nasty chores in order to get some great results.
For instance, I’ve been on a weight loss hot streak for the last two and a half months. Monday through Friday I’m on point with my workouts and my diet, yet when the weekends roll around, I do not know how to handle myself. I’m constantly snacking, and my activity goes way down. The weekends have traditionally been scheduled for resting my body, recovering from the hard workouts during the week and also some down time for mental recovery from the stress any work week can provide.
I’m so close to my ideal weight target that I knew if I could somehow build my days on the weekend similar to my work week but also allow some time for the mental and physical recovery, I’d be able to hit my goal.
So, what did I do? Well, I’ve had a home improvement project that I’ve been neglecting, mostly because it doesn’t sound like something I want to waste a Saturday afternoon doing. It wasn’t too strenuous of a project and didn’t require any brain work. My body and mind could both relax, I remained occupied for the majority of the day thus I did not snack at all. On top of it, the activity was extremely good for my mental state. I had been putting off this project because there was no real perceived benefit, yet I found multiple ways to win from not snacking and hitting my weight loss goal to actually and truly having some mental recovery time because I wasn’t bored thinking about all of the up coming work projects I needed to do.
The habit of exercise for me is easy to do. It wasn’t always easy to do, but now it’s a habit. Scheduling activities on the weekends to keep myself busy has never been something that I do, however through the pain of this, I see there are some massive rewards.
We can all agree with consistent exercise, we will see results. Sometimes these results take time to manifest. Soooooo, what other benefit can we get from exercise besides the target goal that we can put our focus on? Is the gym next to a place that you can go to for some kind of enjoyment after a workout? Can you feel your energy levels or mood improve from each workout session? Can an improved mood help you with your relationships? Can more energy give you fuel to play with your children? Does exercise help regulate your focus throughout the day, thus helping you earn more money at your job?
Layer these effects on the things you know you should do to tip the scales where the calculation of reward and benefit outweighs not performing the activity. Then, use that as the driving force to continue to push towards your goal!
