Busy Bee Health Essentials: The Importance of Patience, Persistence, and Habits
The Importance of Patience, Persistence, and Habits
Patience is one of the most relevant (although often dismissed) topics these days in the world. The populations of the world are conditioned through internet and smartphones and computers that start up in less than 10 seconds to expect results immediately.
This is ok for everything that's unimportant to minimally important. You can check your e-mail in twenty seconds and quick-sort all the folders on your computer to make more sense.
However: In order to obtain long-lasting results in important areas of your life you will have to practise patience instead. You will often have to learn how do something important (such as manage your nutrient intake or your weight) and you will sometimes have to wait for not merely a good idea but a brilliant idea. The best things always take the longest time. This is also where persistence comes in. You don't want to quit just when you got started!
Let me demonstrate this with an example:
Think of New Year's resolutions (as cliche as it sounds). They don't usually work out. Why? Because people who've eaten a single vegetable or done a single exercise (or any other of the popular health-related resolutions) suddenly decide that from the first day of the new year on they will 1.) only eat vegetables and b.) they will exercise for 2 hours every day.
These people have no patience with either themselves or the progress (and there is an intricate process involved in everything worth having and doing). They expect to make a decision (such as looking up a diet program on the internet) and having the result within a week (or a day). And if the results don't come - well. Isn't this all a waste of time? This is when most people try something different instead.
Here is the reason WHY this kind of thinking doesn't work (in the practical example of New Year's resolutions):
You can only force yourself to do something (such as exercise every day or cutting candy out of your diet) for a few days until you slip back into your old habits (which have been reinforced by repetition - meaning you had the patience to repeat them because they were easy). This is logical. There is no person with the willpower or self-control to stick with a massive change in life all at once. You can go cold turkey on sweets. It might work for a week. But then the craving sets in and since you don't have any patience you'll slip back into old habits - like everyone else.
There is a another big why here - and in short: It's because of habits:
What you do frequently determines your habits.
This sentence might become more clearly related to patience when you consider it slightly re-formulated: What you have the patience to do frequently determines your habits and in turn your life.
If you're used to eating dessert after every lunch then your brain and body damn well want their dessert after lunch. They are like children demanding to have 'this shiny toy right NOW' and if you try to fight them you (in this case: your self-control/stamina/willpower) are going to lose. And you're already busy - so why would you want to waste all your willpower et al. like this? It doesn't make sense. You need your energy for other things!
BUT
You can vastly improve your life by taking small steps and adding them up until you've formed a new habit. This is common sense, and it's also why New Year's resolutions are stupid. You can't change yourself immediately. If you're used to drinking coffee every morning and want to get rid of that habit, then trying to not drink coffee any more at all will be hard.
The best way to create a new habit is always this:
Do it gradually. Persist (over time)! There is no forcing yourself. This again involves patience and mostly importantly the build-up of patience as a skill. (Hint! Did you notice my writing 'practice patience' in the third paragraph? That's because patience is a skill. A lot of us aren't born with it but everyone can cultivate it. And it's doubly important if you have time to watch what you eat that you actually train yourself to be patient in order to become healthier.)
Two examples:
1. If you want to 'eat less candy'/'eat healthier': Don't try to cut out all candy immediately or eat only green stuff but start with perhaps 'one day a week no candy' and 'two days a week no/half the usual size of meat but three times your regular size of vegetables'. It will be hard at first but becomes much easier over time especially if you distract yourself through other pursuits. Then when these first two steps are working go on to 'two days a week no candy' and 'four times a week thrice the vegetables'.
Tip! This is important when trying to eat healthier or reducing portion sizes especially: STOP asking yourself if you're full after a meal (or half a meal). Ask yourself if you're STILL HUNGRY. If yes = eat more. If no = stop eating even if there's still food on your plate.
2. If you want to 'exercise more': You don't need to plan a rigorous program of every 2-hours of exercise every day. All you have to do is go for a 15-minute walk two times a week at first. (TIP! If you're incredibly busy and have lots of meetings, take your phone, go outside, and talk while you walk. Also, take the stairs back up, not the elevator.)
You can always do more later. If you try to do it all at once you will be overwhelmed and your self-control will fail you easily.
Although the above are (as always) my own conclusion about life and health there is a lot of research to back this up as well. If you do have the time (and the willpower after you've absorbed all the above) I'd recommend you to check out some of the books. You can find them here: Resources under 'On Changing Unhealthy Habits'.
Do you have any questions about patience and habits? Post a comment below! And if you'd like to chat follow me on Twitter (@Jasmingelinck) or subscribe to my e-mail list!
WriteBot.
Patience is one of the most relevant (although often dismissed) topics these days in the world. The populations of the world are conditioned through internet and smartphones and computers that start up in less than 10 seconds to expect results immediately.
This is ok for everything that's unimportant to minimally important. You can check your e-mail in twenty seconds and quick-sort all the folders on your computer to make more sense.
However: In order to obtain long-lasting results in important areas of your life you will have to practise patience instead. You will often have to learn how do something important (such as manage your nutrient intake or your weight) and you will sometimes have to wait for not merely a good idea but a brilliant idea. The best things always take the longest time. This is also where persistence comes in. You don't want to quit just when you got started!
Let me demonstrate this with an example:
Think of New Year's resolutions (as cliche as it sounds). They don't usually work out. Why? Because people who've eaten a single vegetable or done a single exercise (or any other of the popular health-related resolutions) suddenly decide that from the first day of the new year on they will 1.) only eat vegetables and b.) they will exercise for 2 hours every day.
These people have no patience with either themselves or the progress (and there is an intricate process involved in everything worth having and doing). They expect to make a decision (such as looking up a diet program on the internet) and having the result within a week (or a day). And if the results don't come - well. Isn't this all a waste of time? This is when most people try something different instead.
Here is the reason WHY this kind of thinking doesn't work (in the practical example of New Year's resolutions):
You can only force yourself to do something (such as exercise every day or cutting candy out of your diet) for a few days until you slip back into your old habits (which have been reinforced by repetition - meaning you had the patience to repeat them because they were easy). This is logical. There is no person with the willpower or self-control to stick with a massive change in life all at once. You can go cold turkey on sweets. It might work for a week. But then the craving sets in and since you don't have any patience you'll slip back into old habits - like everyone else.
There is a another big why here - and in short: It's because of habits:
What you do frequently determines your habits.
This sentence might become more clearly related to patience when you consider it slightly re-formulated: What you have the patience to do frequently determines your habits and in turn your life.
If you're used to eating dessert after every lunch then your brain and body damn well want their dessert after lunch. They are like children demanding to have 'this shiny toy right NOW' and if you try to fight them you (in this case: your self-control/stamina/willpower) are going to lose. And you're already busy - so why would you want to waste all your willpower et al. like this? It doesn't make sense. You need your energy for other things!
BUT
You can vastly improve your life by taking small steps and adding them up until you've formed a new habit. This is common sense, and it's also why New Year's resolutions are stupid. You can't change yourself immediately. If you're used to drinking coffee every morning and want to get rid of that habit, then trying to not drink coffee any more at all will be hard.
The best way to create a new habit is always this:
Do it gradually. Persist (over time)! There is no forcing yourself. This again involves patience and mostly importantly the build-up of patience as a skill. (Hint! Did you notice my writing 'practice patience' in the third paragraph? That's because patience is a skill. A lot of us aren't born with it but everyone can cultivate it. And it's doubly important if you have time to watch what you eat that you actually train yourself to be patient in order to become healthier.)
Two examples:
1. If you want to 'eat less candy'/'eat healthier': Don't try to cut out all candy immediately or eat only green stuff but start with perhaps 'one day a week no candy' and 'two days a week no/half the usual size of meat but three times your regular size of vegetables'. It will be hard at first but becomes much easier over time especially if you distract yourself through other pursuits. Then when these first two steps are working go on to 'two days a week no candy' and 'four times a week thrice the vegetables'.
Tip! This is important when trying to eat healthier or reducing portion sizes especially: STOP asking yourself if you're full after a meal (or half a meal). Ask yourself if you're STILL HUNGRY. If yes = eat more. If no = stop eating even if there's still food on your plate.
2. If you want to 'exercise more': You don't need to plan a rigorous program of every 2-hours of exercise every day. All you have to do is go for a 15-minute walk two times a week at first. (TIP! If you're incredibly busy and have lots of meetings, take your phone, go outside, and talk while you walk. Also, take the stairs back up, not the elevator.)
You can always do more later. If you try to do it all at once you will be overwhelmed and your self-control will fail you easily.
Although the above are (as always) my own conclusion about life and health there is a lot of research to back this up as well. If you do have the time (and the willpower after you've absorbed all the above) I'd recommend you to check out some of the books. You can find them here: Resources under 'On Changing Unhealthy Habits'.
Do you have any questions about patience and habits? Post a comment below! And if you'd like to chat follow me on Twitter (@Jasmingelinck) or subscribe to my e-mail list!
WriteBot.
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