‼️Can I have your attention, please ‼️ Stop being gentle to yourself
"Stop being gentle to yourself" - this is a phrase that might seem harsh to some, but it's a message that we all need to hear from time to time. We are constantly bombarded with messages of self-love, body positivity, and the importance of self-care, but we often use these slogans as an excuse for our unhealthy habits. We need to be honest with ourselves and recognize when we are making bad decisions that are not helping us in the long run.
I recently attended a Memory Walk in Bristol, and I was dismayed to see that most of the participants ended up in pubs and restaurants drinking beers, cocktails, and eating burgers and chips without any control. It almost seemed like an eating and drinking race. While I appreciate the positive effects of such events that bring people together and encourage physical activity, it's concerning to see that people think they can eat and drink whatever they want because they've done something healthy.
I often hear from clients during the week that they are too tired to work out because they had a busy day or went for a couple of cocktails the night before to destress. We drink during the weekend because we're going to meet friends, and we need to eat poorly during the weekend because someone has a birthday. We eat junk food during the week because it's "too hard" to eat something different when we go to the cinema. And what's surprising is that people think they deserve it because they've walked 10,000 steps.
Our bodies were created to move, not to sit. As hunter-gatherers, people needed to walk great distances to find food and run fast and far to escape danger. Food was scarce and hard to obtain, causing the human body to adapt by conserving energy to use during times of famine.
It's essential to understand that training twice a week is a minimum requirement, and walking 10,000 steps every day is necessary for good health, not something that deserves a reward. More than 50% of my clients used to drink more than twice a week before they started working with me, and most of them struggle to go without drinking for a week. But they have no problem canceling a session or not going to the gym for a week. This shows that their priorities are wrong.
If you need to reward yourself, take a hot bath with essential oils, candles, and relaxing music, go to the spa, go shopping, or take a day off and spend it with someone special. Balance is crucial in life, but drinking twice a week, eating sweets twice a week, eating fast food twice a week, and going to the gym zero or once a week is not a balanced approach.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that adults aged 18-64 should do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity per week. They also recommend muscle-strengthening activities involving major muscle groups on two or more days a week. These are not difficult goals to achieve, but we need to make them a priority.
In conclusion, it's time to stop making excuses for our unhealthy habits and start being honest with ourselves. We need to prioritize our physical health and make time for exercise and other healthy activities. We need to stop being gentle with ourselves and start taking responsibility for our well-being. It's time to make a change for the better, and it starts with us.