Written by: LeAnn Smith, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I get asked often by clients, and people in general, how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. They struggle with balancing their healthy habits and life’s twists and turns.
They find themselves becoming easily unmotivated, which leads to frustration. It isn’t long before feelings of failure and disappointment creep in. The problem isn’t their need or want to be healthier but finding a consistent resolve to sustain their healthy habits.
I get it, and I understand.
The answer lies in a question.
What is your why?
More specifically, why do you want to be healthier?
When I start with a new client, I ask them why they want to be healthier. I will typically get an initial response of "to lose weight" or “look good for vacation” or “to fit into my skinny jeans again.” These are great goals, but they aren’t life-changing, motivating reasons to remain consistent in your well-being.
To get to the true root reason, I use the Five Whys Method. This method was created in the 1930s by Sakichi Toyoda, a Japanese inventor, industrialist, and founder of Toyoda Industries.
The Five Whys Method is a problem-solving technique that asks a series of five questions, or five ‘whys”, to get to the root cause or answer of a problem.
In our case, it is understanding or realizing your why to become consistently healthy.
After explaining the method to my clients and working through the questions, they might end up with something like, "so I can manage my health issue" or "to not trigger a health issue" to “to start living my life rather than being a bystander.”
See the difference in the statements? “To fit into my skinny jeans” isn’t motivating enough. It’s a great goal or side effect, but not enough to sustain you through life’s challenges.
Now take a powerful statement like “to manage my health issue.” Your mindset shifts. Your resolve shifts. One is vanity, and the other is about life or (potentially) death.
That root reason becomes your motivation to be consistent in your health. To understand that a balanced, healthy lifestyle will have peaks and valleys. Keeping your ‘why’ in focus will bring you back into your wellness journey.
It won’t be easy, but neither is living a life unhealthy, sick, on medication, or worse.
To find your why, you have to keep digging.
It may not be readily evident to you at first. Challenge yourself to move beyond the superficial “look good on vacation.” Remember, those are goals but not your true “why.”
Once we truly understand our 'why,' we can put words into action. Our mindset and behaviors towards living a balanced, healthy lifestyle will shift.
Your reason for eating healthier will shift.
Your purpose for exercising will shift.
You will connect the dots between your “why” and start doing the work.
We realize the journey to better health doesn’t have an end date but, rather, a realistic approach to living our best lives. Having a clear reason or purpose can motivate us to keep moving forward.
I highly recommend that people post their 'why' on the fridge, mirrors, or anywhere as a daily reminder. When you have a tough day, and we all do, you have that affirmation of why you are doing the work. To bring all the work we are doing back into focus.
If you are finding yourself stuck on a never-ending cycle on your wellness journey, ask yourself the five why’s. Be honest with yourself.
The answer might surprise you.
LeAnn Smith, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
LeAnn works with clients that are ‘stuck’ in their wellness journey either by injury, illness, disease or otherwise. Her approach is to meet you where you are, partner together to create a customized plan to support your goals and lifestyle. LeAnn provides a full spectrum approach of wellness modalities to her clients with over eleven years of experience, such as Personal Training, Yoga Instruction, Health & Nutrition Coaching. Her motto: Welcome home, your vibrant self awaits!
LeAnn also offers Corporate Wellness solutions for organizations of all sizes. With over fourteen years of corporate Human Resources experience, she brings a wealth of corporate, organizational knowledge and understanding and the ability to provide customized and engaging health and wellness solutions.
