A musing about starting and stopping

This week I was chatting with a friend at work about how I almost didn't come in to work that day.  He said, "yah me too."  I guess he was out until 2:00 a.m.  I then commented, "I considered it but I decided that going to work is just what I do."  He chuckled and said, "yep that's what we do."  How often do you think I would go to work if I had to decide every morning based on how I feel?  I'm pretty sure my bosses would hand me a pink slip pretty quick if how I felt determined my choice each morning.  And so it is with so many things in life.

Back when I was much younger, I made some choices that weren't too wise.  When I decided that I was ready to make changes, I only had to decide that I didn't do those things anymore once.  I knew that if I were to wait until I was in certain situations to decide that I would be playing with fire.  So I just said, "I don't do those things anymore."  I haven't looked back since.

This concept has application in so many areas of life.  I have had a few people ask me how I am able to workout and eat healthy all the time.  To be honest at this point it's pretty simple.  It's just what I do.  It took some work to get over the bad habits and to implement the good ones but once I decided that this is my lifestyle, I haven't looked back.  I don't plan on looking back either.  How could I?  This lifestyle feels amazing!

So as you may be thinking about some of the things that you would like to change in life, remember that it is so much easier to decide once and then just follow through with that choice day in and day out.  I love working out because it is such a mental game and it trains me to ignore the negative self doubts and overcome with each new choice.