One of my friends recently verbalized something that I had never articulated, but I realized it’s what I’m always aiming for. He said:
“My health has been trending upward over the last several years.”
Him and I were talking about things we don’t like to eat because of the potentially negative effects they can have on the body. We came to the conclusion that sometimes it just happens, and it’s ultimately okay. That’s where his quote comes in.
From where we were a couple years ago, we are living infinitely better and healthier lives. Honestly, that’s all that matters. You’re never living a 100% perfectly healthy life; it’s not possible.
I think it’s best to adopt the mindset of always doing the best you can and tinkering with areas that could use improvement, as simple as that sounds. It’s not worth feeling any shame or embarrassment over letting your diet go for the day or for the weekend when that’s just going to set you back further and give you negative reinforcement.
It’s better to keep yourself in a positive loop and do what you have to do to stay on track.
For him and I, that means sometimes we have a pint of ice cream after dinner. Of course I’m not proud to say that, but it is what it is. I’m not going to hide it. Even though I wish I could tell you I eat a picture-perfect diet, I simply don’t.
I eat very well in my opinion, and I’m always “on” my diet. I don’t let myself slip often. But maybe those occasional slips actually allow me to do my diet with little suffering the rest of the time? I would say so.
That makes those slip-ups valuable then if it keeps me focused on the big picture without getting caught up over one treat that I wish I didn’t eat.
When I said he verbalized something that I had always been aiming for, I basically meant being on the path of continuous learning and improvement. The concept I like to think of is called ‘Kaizen’ in Japanese culture. The idea is to never stop improving.
This is very much how I treat life as well, like one big evolution in a positive direction. But in this context, it was about health and diet, mainly the way we eat.
Instead of looking at the end result of what you could be all the time and comparing that to yourself now, which is likely very far away from the idealistic picture in your head, focus on making your health trend upward.
You need to make your newer healthy habits stick. Most people who try diets end up quitting them very quickly. The reason why is because they want to jump from doing nothing right to doing everything right. That’s not realistic in the slightest.
I had to build myself up to what I do now by learning insightful health information and getting excited about it for years. It was not a quick transition by any means.
Some tendencies come quickly, but the full picture is a slow process. Again, that’s okay. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
Make those improved practices count by cementing them into your lifestyle over time. This is what really gives you long term benefits and makes your health trend upward in a meaningful and lasting way.
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