If you weren’t convinced beforehand, 2020 certainly taught all of us that you cannot control everything in life. We all experience good and bad – be it pandemics, genetics, people, weather, or just plain luck – outside our control.
Nevertheless, we would be wise not to overlook or undervalue the power of our choices. Actively and passively we all make choices that impact our present and our future. Ignoring this comes at the cost of missed opportunities to grow, change, and live the lives we want.
Making better choices means making change. Change, even positive change, can be hard and uncomfortable. But let’s consider the influences of our thoughts, our emotions, and our environment.
Our thoughts start with facts. Fact: one of our biggest health issues in Tamworth is that nearly 80% of us are above a healthy weight. To improve this, we need facts about what we eat and how we move.
How we think, or our mindset is also important. A simple shift from “I’ll always be overweight” to “I’m learning to better manage my weight” helps make change possible.
While we might like to think our thoughts are in control, change is difficult if our emotions aren’t convinced. Let’s be honest with ourselves about how we feel about our bodies, our weight, eating, and food. What do we want, and what can we change? Considering a positive future may spark the motivation you’re missing.
Our environment has tremendous influence on our decisions, so it helps to set it up well.
For the household this might mean pre-planning meals and making sure the pantry contains nutritious food. This shifts the decision-making to an easier time, and not when you have late night munchies.
As a community we have responsibility to each other. A fast-food venue on every block may be good for the economy but is unlikely to be good for our community’s long-term health. Equally, people won’t walk if there is no path, and won’t swim if there is no pool.
Let’s make healthy choices easier for ourselves, and for each other.
What positive change could you choose this week?