Instead Of Waiting, Give It Yourself
There is a saying that goes like this: “Never give up, always keep moving forward.”
In general, this one statement provides an uplifting and motivating moral to any number of situations that individuals may find themselves in. But what if the situation you were in was struggling so hard with motivation and difficulty that it felt like no matter how long you waited or how much you tried, nothing would change? That's where people turn to something called self-compassion–the act of treating oneself kindly and with kindness during difficult times. Self-compassion could be compared to a therapeutic solution for those who struggle on their own without professional help to overcome a specific issue.
According to a recent study conducted by scientists at University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and the University of Tennessee-Knox, the act of self-compassion can be highly beneficial in helping individuals reach their goals. The researchers found that if individuals practiced self-compassionful behaviors prior to setting a goal, they were able to attain their goals 28% faster than those who did not make use of this practice. This is shown by a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Performing questionnaires before and after the study period determined that participants who made use of self-compassion before setting goals were more likely to complete them successfully than those who did not utilize this practice. It can be argued that self-compassion was the key factor which provided the motivation to persevere through setting difficult goals and achieving them.
"We find that self-compassion is equally effective at helping individuals overcome obstacles as a way to achieve their goals," said Erika L. Tennen, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, who conducted the study with psychological scientist Joseph Ciarrochi, of University of Tennessee. "Self-compassion appears to be a useful strategy for helping people put their goals into action.
One of the best-known methods to practice self-compassion is through self-kindness–a practice that removes judgment by placing the responsibility of failure on factors outside of one's control. Self-compassion functions as a “mental hug” in these scenarios and provides an individual with an inner resilience necessary to continue striving towards goals.
In fact, according to a recent study by Elaine A. Lutz and Karen L. Syrnyk, both from the University of New Brunswick in Canada, self-compassion can help improve mental health among individuals in suicide bereavement. This study found that individuals dealing with grief due to suicide frequently had poor self-compassion, and the lack of understanding of their own painful feelings brought forth a sense of isolation.
Self-compassion was then suggested as a method to help alleviate their suffering by providing support and a nonjudgmental environment in which they could feel comfortable. The results showed that practicing self-compassion can create an improvement in both mental and physical health as well as psychological well-being.
Although it is difficult to say whether or not the mental health of those who commit suicide declines solely because they lack self-compassion, there is no doubt that being able to be kind and supportive towards oneself during times of great distress is beneficial.
It can be argued that the act of being able to put oneself in another's shoes is a necessary and healthy way to embrace one's humanity and prevent self-hatred from taking over. It could also be argued that the act of being able to differentiate between what is controllable versus what is not allows for a more realistic understanding of the world around you.
If your goal is difficult and difficult to attain, maybe it's time you give yourself a little kindness–even if it's only 5 minutes a day at first–and see what happens. The results may surprise you.
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September 10 2017 • Gordon Gekko Article
I know I already mentioned it this morning, but I'm going to do it again because truthfully I don't think there's enough discussion on this topic. We've heard that the human body is a machine and need energy to run properly. But what if we're not talking about "energy", we're talking about nutrients? That's right! While you may have been told that you need to eat a certain amount of calories per day, or "calories in vs calories out", I think the reality is that there's much more to the story than that. Sure, you need to put fuel in the tank, but that doesn't mean it can be anything. You NEED a specific type of fuel that can provide the power your body needs to run at its BEST. One of those nutrients is protein. And this article will explain why protein is important.
My dad taught me that in life, energy equals health and movement equals energy (caveat - if you're moving under your own power). He was an ex-Marine who believed in hard physical work (he mostly did construction) and good nutrition for personal health, overall fitness and longevity. That led me to use his equation on myself, my family and my friends. I've found over the years that some people have a hard time understanding the mechanics of moving stuff and lifting stuff. They get stuck on the calories in vs. calories out (CICO) and barely scratch beyond that basic idea.
The problem with CICO is that it can be a black box for those who misunderstand how it works. Your body doesn't care if you're eating 1,000 calories or 30,000 calories as long as there's more energy coming in than going out (which is becoming increasingly more difficult for most people). That's why people can be overweight and still eat what most would consider to be a "normal" diet. CICO doesn't mean much because it doesn't tell you what kind of energy is being used by the body.
I've also noticed that some people get stuck on the idea that they need to "eat less" to lose weight. Again, CICO can be misleading when it comes to individual health because the body needs different things at different times and there's no scale that can be used to measure what the body needs. This is why some people think they need to eat less (calories) but still feel "hungry" all of the time.
Let me explain by using an analogy from my favorite science fiction movie - The Matrix . Every time someone goes into The Matrix they have a choice of taking the blue pill or the red pill. The blue pill erases the person's memory and they continue on with their life unaware that they're living inside a computer program. On the other hand, the red pill shows you how to exit The Matrix and start living in the "real world".
The blue pill would be like using CICO to lose weight. I've seen countless people take CICO with them as they try to get in shape because "everyone knows" that it works. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for everyone because it doesn't tell you how to get into shape .
Conclusion
In the end, there are two different approaches to planning your nutrition for fat loss. You can either be a master of calories in vs. calories out (like The Matrix character Neo) or you can learn how to get out of The Matrix and start eating for your body's specific needs .
If you want more help and strategies on how to eat right and lose weight, please check out my Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification Program .
The post How To Lose Weight – Calories In vs Calories Out vs Nutrients appeared first on Authority Nutrition.