"Show me a person who has it all but is going backwards and I will show you a person who has nothing. Show me a person who has nothing but is moving forwards and I will show you a person who has it all. "
What would you think if I told you it was possible to change your body and your life in just two short weeks?
You'd be justified in thinking that I am either a crazy optimist or extremely keen to sell you something, it does seem a ludicrously short period after all.
What can really happen in two weeks? How can your life possibly change in such a short period of time?
If you are looking to lose 30kg then two weeks would seem not nearly long enough to make a dramatic difference, but I suggest this is precisely the amount of time it takes for any individual to change the landscape of their lives regardless of how much weight they need to lose.
This is because the key to long-term change is determined not by the arrival at the target destination but rather by the habits we have formed in the process.
When we have a set of habits that exist in a state of momentum driven advancement towards our chosen destination, life has purpose. Purpose is to the soul what food is to the body. With purpose comes progress and with progress comes change.
Before we see progress though, we must develop new purposeful habits and it is to this end that many fail. Habits are key.
Although I believe you could apply this concept to any area of your life, I want to specifically apply it to weight loss and health.
The misuse of will power.
Most people assume that if they want something enough they can will it to happen, but soon become disappointed when the will power reserves run dry and they start resorting to old behaviors.
We all possess will power but in very limited supply and we must therefore use it intelligently.
The most important thing to understand about will power is that it is almost completely useless at helping us to accomplish our long-term goals, but is exceptionally effective at aiding the achievement of short-term goals.
Most people use will power in relation to abstract long term goals such as I am want to lose weight or I am going to get fit when it is far better to focus the energy of our will power on definitive short term goals that will in turn create long term success.
In other words we must direct our will power towards the creation of new habits.
•Create healthy eating habits
•Create new exercise habits
We know that two weeks is not enough time to turn an action into a ritual but it is just about enough time for two crucial things to happen.
Firstly, we have long known that the consumption of processed carbohydrates and fats release the hormones serotonin and dopamine. Addiction to these hormones is what causes us to crave these foods. Many people are unaware of there own addiction to junk food and the hormones they stimulate and will often express surprise when I tell them they are addicts, before recognizing the traits. Fortunately this is usually a breakthrough moment.
Two weeks is enough time to get over these addictions and the good news is you should have just enough will power to get you there.
The second thing that happens after two weeks is that you start to see progress; a notch off your belt, a passing comment from a friend, a loss of weight on the scales or a pair of jeans squeezing on that were previously too tight to get passed your thighs.
Like the first buds of spring helping us to forget about winter, the first sign of progress helps us to forget about our body woes, and in this moment will power stops being as important; we now have improvement and achievement as more compelling and welcome bedfellows.
"Life is what happened while we were busy making other plans"
John Lennon
Change is what happened once you stopped and realized how much fun you were having. We are driven by change but inspired by progress on a daily basis.
When you reach your target weight or dress size you will enjoy the destination, but no more than you should enjoy the journey.
So you can see that just two weeks from today it is perfectly feasible to have developed new healthy habits, to be broken free from addiction and to be experiencing progress towards a goal we want to accomplish.
Casting back to the original quote in this dialogue;
"Show me a person who has it all but is going backwards and I will show you a person who has nothing. Show me a person who has nothing but is moving forwards and I will show you a person who has it all. "
In this way you can see how possible it is to change your life entirely in just two short weeks.