Monday, August 22, 2011

Client Response To "The Dialogues".

Cherie
"Everyone has days when they crave stuff they shouldn't have-alcohol, carbs! (oh, I do miss carbs), but I don't go around counting every calorie or wishing I could have this or that. Most days I don't even think about it. I eat a colourful salad, sip a green smoothie, crack open a tin of tuna- and I enjoy it. Even look forward to it (ok sometimes not the tuna). Sometimes I will give into the craving on those days, noone is perfect 100% of the time but it often is a conscious decision to ensure that "sometimes" doesn’t morph into "regular" or "often".

I know lots of men/women who refuse certain foods and beverages etc because they are following a training regime at various times- they aren’t considered boring by anyone I know. But if I do get asked why I'm not partaking, my response is simply - I don't feel like it (said with a smile!) or if I'm in a particularly hyper mood- I don't NEED it! :-)  It doesn’t have to be a big deal, I don’t have to be a martyr, I don’t have to provide a detailed explanation as to why my training goals don’t support a drinking habit, or a kebab complete with sour cream at 3am. I don’t have to be "that" girl, and in the end, if my friends don’t respect my choices, then perhaps I need new friends!

I'm not going to lie, wine was difficult to give up for the first week/end but again, now I don't even think about it unless I have a day like yesterday. However, even then, do I miss it because I want the wine or because it was simply a habit to reach for the glass after one of those looooong days at the office? When I finally dragged myself through the door at 8pm- I decided to reach for a glass of sparkling water instead and have an early night- which meant I still made it to my 6am yoga class and I felt great all day. I know that would not have happened if I'd had the wine -even if it was only a glass or two.

That's not to say I wouldn't have enjoyed the vino but it's about recognizing other pleasures derived from living by "the rules".

I am a creature of habit. A lot of the time the pleasure I derive from my actions/choices is largely due to the comfort of the habit, not necessarily the act/food/beverage itself.

A training program is not just about training your body, it's about training your mind, too.

However, at the end of the day, it all comes down to what you are willing to accept and/or sacrifice, you have to decide what makes you happy.

I'm not getting results at warp speed either- but I'm learning to enjoy living by the rules rather than dreading them- and for me that makes the process a whole lot more bearable (I also like to think it makes the days that I do fall off the wagon more forgivable!) and I hope, more successful, in the long term."
See the insightful people I get to work with?

And another client response: 
"... I agree with both of you...cos that’s how I feel...but saying that I know I have to be strict to get the results hence why I’m doing lite and easy, but the downside to that is only when I can afford it which means for say 1 to 2 weeks a month..I decide and then the bad things come back in! I know that  I have to make drastic changes to get the results and know that i couldn’t maintain that way of living...think eventually most people will get to the place they want to go (physically and mentally) but it does take everyone different times?"

2 comments:

  1. Pshhh, I've been vegetarian for 12 years, and vegan for about 10... and my family/many friends *still* give me a hard time! Unfortunately when you follow a diet considered to be "other", you're always going to get flack for it, and anyone who doesn't is one of the rare lucky ones.

    The only thing that makes a diet/program easy to stick to despite all this is being truly passionate about it, so you have enough resolve to not back down because your mates are teasing you again/telling you to suck it up and just eat normal food/live a little.

    (I think I'm still bitter about being forced to do lunch at the Brisbane last week with my aunt and cousin, because my choice wasn't a pub, and they wanted steak and beer. It was vegan hell)

    ....I think we need a support group :P

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