Cultivating a Mindset

Exercise… BLAH!

Why can’t I love it like others do? I see moms who can’t wait to get to the gym every day. And there are those that run 5-10 miles, lift weights at home, and then do yoga before bed. OMG! If I could just have an ounce of their LOVE for exercise.

As a kid I played sports… but the running and stretching was always a chore. Catch a ball while running and I would do it all day. But take away the ball and just do sprints… YUCK!

I’ve recently been working with a posture pilates coach. She gives me a home routine involving stretching, weights, and pilates exercises that increase my heart rate and simultaneously improve my posture. I love how I feel after working out with her. I love how I feel after I do my home routine. My doctor has even commented on my improved health as a result. BUT I struggle every day with rallying to get started. I even putting on my work out clothes first thing every morning to get my head into it.

But… I just don’t LOVE doing it.

WHY?

My husband says it’s my mindset. I haven’t embraced the VALUE and JOY from working out. I haven’t chosen a LIFELONG HEALTH mindset.

That sounds simple… How do I get that? How do I cultivate this mindset?

SIMPLE… but not EASY. Shifting a mindset is hard work. It’s undoing the current mindset that has existed for…. Well, way too many years and rebuilding a new mindset.

• It involves consciously focusing on the positive outcomes and feelings which can shift my motivation.
• It involves self-monitoring my negative talk like “I HATE THIS,” and replacing it with positive talk like, “I love how I feel. This is good for me.”
• It involves tracking my progress to SEE the results.
• And it involves bringing others around me that LOVE working out to help me get started, to encourage me, and to celebrate with me.

Of course I connect this to LEARNING…. My thing!!

Being a LIFELONG LEARNER is a mindset.  Many say I’m a lifelong learner, but when the learning gets tough… UGH!  Out of the mouth comes “I hate learning. I’m tired of re-learning this software because of updates. I finished learning when I graduated college.” We resist the learning process because we really don’t LOVE it.  We tolerate it… at best. Like working out.

 Then it hits me… this is how I pass along my BAGGAGE to my child. Great! While my mindset affects my motivation and love for something, my ACTIONS model it for my son. Instead of seeing mom value a LIFELONG HEALTH mindset and witness her enjoy working out, press through challenges, and celebrate results, he sees me tolerate and YES… whine about it.  I don’t want that for either of us.

 Do we do the same with learning? Instead of being true LIFELONG LEARNERS do we tolerate it? Do we only engage in the learning process because we have to? Do we pass along our own struggles with learning like the fear of making mistakes or resisting getting help because it makes us feel inadequate?

Or do we let them see a woman who values learning, presses through challenges, and embraces new adventures?

I have decided to commit to a mindset shift about working out! I want a LIFELONG HEALTH mindset for myself and to be a great model of LIFELONG HEALTH for my son.

Do you struggle with being a LIFELONG LEARNER mindset? Share with us your struggle so we can encourage you through a mindset shift. Homeschool HUB.