Women Personality and Mental Health

STEP EIGHT: Recognize Negative Thinking Pattern
There are a million varieties to the pain we all inflict on ourselves through destructive thinking patterns, but they all come down to the same issue: not existing in the here and now. If you can truly focus on the present moment, your choices become incredibly easy. If exercise is the issue, the question becomes: Will I be better off if I walk today? The answer is yes. The only way this gets complicated is when your mind starts bringing the past and future into it. Then dangerous mind games start: “What’s the point in walking today? I’ll only lose a quarter of a pound or so.” “If I walk twice tomorrow, I can skip today.” “My parents were fat and I was meant to be, too. It doesn’t matter what I try.”

If you suspect that negative thinking patterns hold you back in life, do some reverse detective work to find out. When you’re hit with that feeling of hope-lessness, self-criticism, or depression, ask yourself where that feeling came from. Track your thoughts backward over the past few minutes. See if you can remember what led to what. With practice, you may uncover some dysfunctional reasoning hiding out in your very own brain and hijacking it. (If you can’t ferret out your own, therapists can help.)

Your other alternative is not to worry about the negative thoughts, but to ignore them and keep yourself strongly focused on the here and now. All you have is today.

STEP NINE: No Slips For Four Weeks
Twenty-one days is the key to establishing a new habit. After that, your brain and body expect to do the new activity; you just have to follow through. Once the new habit is established, you can slip now and then and it won’t affect your overall success or motivation. You’ll get right back to it the next day. But earlier slips interfere with the formation of the new pattern. For the first four weeks, try extra hard to stick to your goals. If necessary, remind yourself that you will be allowed to deviate eventually. That should keep you from getting discouraged. Sticking to something with no slips for four weeks is doable; doing it for life with no slips isn’t.

STEP TEN: Rewards
The trick with rewards is to keep them in proportion to the goal. If the goal is to walk two miles for the first time, the reward is not a new car. Small rewards on a daily basis help give you a good feeling about your activity without making the activity seem beside the point. Fresh flowers, new books, or a luxurious bath make good daily rewards. A different hairdo or new clothes could reward sticking to your goals for a week. When you reach big milestones, by all means reward yourself appropriately. Just make sure the rewards aren’t detrimental to your goals. No candy if the goal is weight loss!

Read the list:
How to Get And Stay Motivated (Part 1)
How to Get And Stay Motivated (Part 2)