I Am a Person Who

This entry is part 12 of 26 in the series Faithful Fitness

I once had the opportunity to attend a running techniques workshop with a top-notch coach. She had each of us run down the straight-away of an outdoor running track while she stood to the side and assessed our running form, clipboard in hand. (No pressure.) Then she gave each of us a personal assessment of ways we could improve.

One of the first things the coach noticed is that I watched the ground right in front of my feet. This is a problem because we go in the direction we aim. In this case, I was running myself right into the ground — literally. She coached me to look out into the horizon, or at the finish line, where I wanted to go. I could trust my feet to move where they needed to move. The ground isn’t going anywhere.

We go in the direction we aim.

I’ve realized it’s easy for us become the same way when it comes to our health, body image, and fitness goals. We run ourselves into the ground with what we messed up on this week, what other people are achieving instead of us, and how we believe we don’t measure up. This is where jealousy and “why even bother hand me the oreos” creeps into our thinking.

Instead of looking down, a better option is to envision where we want to go. Here is one specific way to do it.

I’ve realized that over the years of maintaining my weight loss, I’ve created a pattern of thinking about who I am. Instead of saying, “I wish I would ________,” I have these thoughts:

“I am a person who _____________.”

I am a person who gets up early to exercise.

I am a person who likes vegetables.

I am a person who isn’t afraid to try new things.

I am person who is content with her weight.

This thought process has developed over time the more I have been successful, and it has become stronger. At first I wasn’t even aware I was using it. It works for areas where you don’t feel especially confident, too — the more you say it, the more it becomes true.