I am doing some research for an upcoming presentation (more on that in a while) and picked up a copy of the book The Intrinsic Exerciser. I have read the book a couple time but what struck me this time was how parallel the author's point about exercising is to mindful eating.
In the book, the author states that a person must find some reason or reasons that he or she can find "mastery, learning, curiosity or enjoyment" in exercise in order to be successful as a life-long exerciser.
Mindful eating is like that. You will never achieve perfect mastery of mindfulness while you eat -- but if that is your goal, you will have immediate feedback about how well you are doing. You will either be mindful of a meal or snack or you won't. And you will have another opportunity to practice in a couple hours.
Whereas, if losing weight is your primary measure of how successful you are being, it might take a couple of weeks to feel successful because you have lost a pound or two. If you have a lot of weight to lose, this victory might feel too small to sustain over the long haul.
So here is the author's idea:
Motivational Mindset Shift
Extrinsic (focusing on the product)
reduce risk of disease
control/lose weight
enhance fitness
goal happens in the future
have to
Intrinsic (focusing on the process)
mastery
feels good
enjoyment
goal happens in the present
want to
Could this mind shift help you??
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