Taking Control Of Your Life

It nearly always happens this way. After twenty minutes of rowing my arms are aching, my heart beat is racing, my legs feel slightly numb. I say to myself, “maybe I’m too tired to make the full forty-five minutes today?” My internal dialogue is trying to give me an excuse not to finish the workout. Then I say to myself, “Just five more minutes, Steve”. Just how difficult can rowing for five more minutes be? So I carry on and the five minutes seem to last for only a few seconds. I feel energised knowing that the workout is nearly over. The tiredness seems to disappear. I row for another five minutes, and then five more. Soon the workout is over and my heart rate starts to return to normal. I feel good for having completed it. Does this sound familiar?

From a psychological perspective, let’s break this down into milestones that reflect my journey from being unfit to being a reasonably fit and healthy individual:

Intention: Like a lot of people I used to be a workaholic, didn’t eat as well as I should and had no work life balance. I had the intention to change my life in a positive way by getting physically fit.

Options: I had to consider how to get fit and this involved a visit to my local gym as well as thinking about my other options. After a tour around the facilities and a discussion about the fees and opening times, I went home to think about the best way forward. I could go running after work, but that didn’t appeal to me. I could buy some gym equipment to use at home, but I knew I’d be too easily distracted at home. It was time to make a decision.

Decision Making: If I was going to get fit again then a decision had to be made. After weighing up the options I called the gym and set up an induction.

Preparation: This involved buying the appropriate footwear and clothing and getting myself psyched up for the induction and the road ahead.

Taking Action: The induction took place on a Monday morning. The trainer showed me how to use the equipment safely and started me off with a basic programme. Now it was up to me!

Doubt: What if I couldn’t follow the programme? What if I was so unfit the next hour would result in failure and my complete embarrassment in front of the other gym users?

Achievement: To get over my doubts I remembered the words of Dr Stephen Covey, “Think with the end in mind”. In terms of my fitness, where did I want to be in six months time? How did I want to feel? Positive images filled my head and began to motivate me. I remembered why I had started this journey – because I wanted to get fit as a first step to achieving a better work life balance. This first step was so important to me and I thought about the positive knock on effects. It helped foster the self belief I needed to succeed.

So how does this help us? How does my ‘getting fit’ metaphor tie in with psychological wellbeing? Think about the different steps I have just described: Intention, options, decision making, preparation, taking action, doubt and achievement. We can apply these steps to many areas in our lives such as our finances, or finding the job we always wanted. Maybe you can use these steps as a template for getting control again.

Sometimes I miss a gym session, but I don’t give myself a hard time about it. I know now how it feels to achieve – so I keep rowing.