Hi guys,
As those of you that are in the Whole Life Challenge know, we are almost halfway through our 6-week adventure! Congrats on a job well done so far! One of the themes I’m seeing the most on everyone’s daily reflections and hearing from people at the gym is a struggle to stop eating things that they know they shouldn’t. “I can’t cut out bread for lunch,” or “I need that glass of wine at night.” It’s a daily hurdle for me too, to not eat a sandwich because it’s convenient or to not have a beer at the end of a long day, and I understand that it’s not because I think those things are good for me, or that I disagree with the setup of the nutrition plan I committed to – it’s because I like those things! They taste good! And why would I deprive myself of that?
My friend Liz (6am class, rock-solid squat clean) recently lent me a book called Insight, and it’s about becoming self-aware. After the standard opening chapter about how great the book will be, in the second chapter they immediately get into the weeds of knowing yourself. Right off the bat, they ask you, “what are your values?” Understanding what my personal values are is an exercise I’ve done a few times, notably when changing careers or asking myself why I’m doing something really hard. “Why am I doing this long-ass endurance event again? Why am I opening this business? Why am I not going to quit?”
The Whole Life Challenge is an endurance event, people. So, if you want to figure out how to get motivated, how to talk yourself out of a decision that you know is not “compliant” with the challenge, then ask yourself this question — why are you doing this in the first place? What personal value do you hold dear that pushed you toward the challenge? What pushed you into CrossFit Kent Island before that? If you can answer that question, then you can face that devil on your shoulder when he’s saying “have a cookie, everyone else is doing it!”
But how do you figure out what your values are? Borrowed from the book Insight by Tasha Eurich, here are a few questions to help you figure it out:
1. What values were you raised with? Do those reflect your values now?
2. Who do you most respect, and what do you respect about them?
3. Who do you least respect, and what makes you feel this way?
4. When it comes to raising a family or mentoring others, what behaviors would you most want to instill?
You might also check out a list of personal values to get the mental juices flowing – just Google “personal values” and you’ll find a bunch of sites that offer such lists, including one I like from Scott Jeffrey that categorizes them into themes like “Creativity”, “Achievement”, “Strength”, etc.
Try to pick 3-5 key values that really hit home for you, that really get you fired up like “YES, that’s what I stand for!” I bet one of them is either Health or Fitness or Tight Abs. If you guys joined a CrossFit gym and you don’t value one of those then we need to talk. But maybe another one is Integrity. Maybe one of yours is Toughness, or Courage. Whatever they are, I encourage you to wrap these into your morning ritual (if you’re not still doing that, get back into it – it is so valuable to get your day started on the right foot!) Here’s what you do – when you’re up and you have a nice glass of water or mug of coffee in your hand, as you’re thinking about how your day is going to go, review your list of personal values. I have mine in the Notes app on my phone, and so every morning I read them: Integrity, Discipline, Health, Family, Service. I bet one of those can get me through a momentary nutrition crisis. If I’ve determined that I really value Discipline, if that is one of the words that I choose to define myself, then I better damn well be able to pass up that “just because” drink. If Integrity is something I cherish, and I signed up for this challenge, then doesn’t going off-script nutrition-wise fail that test?
Look at your values every morning and they will support you throughout the day, as you remind yourself who you are and what you’re really about. Good luck with the rest of the Whole Life Challenge, and best of luck to everyone in finding your values and then holding yourself to them when it counts!
Ryan
Previous Post:
Next Post: