Perspective is a funny thing. It’s something so unique to us humans that we often overlook it. We often dismiss perspective and its effect, but if you think about it, it can make you a completely different person; yet, we can change perspectives as easily as putting on a pair of sunglasses.
So what does perspective have to do with health and wellness? Unsurprisingly, it is all about mindset! I’m not necessarily talking about the old phrase “glass half-full, glass half-empty”, but you can see how that applies. Throughout life we meet new ideas or people that challenge our current perspective on a variety of levels. Consider the following just that, meeting a new group of ideas that you may or may not have met before.
Internal vs. External
This one is pretty common everywhere you look these days, and it is spreading like wildfire thanks to social media. We like to compare ourselves to the next person. How they look, how they behave, how they move. Although we are all humans, no one person has the exact genetic makeup as you (unless you’re an identical twin). So why waste time comparing yourself to “them”? Sure, it would be nice to run like Usain Bolt and swim like Katie Ledecky, but the reality is they are the top .001 percent of the top 1 percent. I’m sure there’s something they can’t do that you can! Change the narrative, change your perspective. “I finished 67th out of 444 people in my race and I didn’t PR, so I had a bad day.” No way, you raced faster than 84 percent of those who raced AND ran the race at a negative split! See? Glass half full.
Past vs. Current vs. Future Self
So if we can’t compare ourselves to other people, we should compare ourselves to ourselves. Things change and so do people. Why should we expect to be the exact same person as we were ten years ago? That’s what we do! We learn and we adapt. You may not be able to squat as much as you did in college, but you have been able to exercise without that nagging knee pain for years now.
The same can be said comparing our current self to our future self. If we notice ourselves trending toward what we perceive as a negative direction, we lose faith in the purpose (goal) when it may be the process (how we get there). You haven’t met your goal of losing 30 pounds in four months? No big deal, you’ve gain muscle mass (which is heavier than fat) and your body fat percentage dropped by three percent! Keep faith in the purpose and keep another perspective in mind.
Healthy vs. Unhealthy Form
Form is key when it comes to exercise and injury prevention. When we set out to do something, hopefully we set out to do it well. Going back to the hypothetical person who could squat more in college, who’s to say that those squats had any quality to go with the quantity? Matter of fact, my money is on unhealthy form being the culprit of their nagging knee pain.
So many individuals get lost in the maze of moving often when they should be moving well.
If you move well, the quantity will come… over time. That’s the goal, isn’t it? To move well and often for as long as you can? Let’s move well and often together, let’s change that perspective together!
It all starts with you: you shape the world you live in. Making lifestyle changes doesn’t have to be a long, arduous process. In fact, it is only that way if you let it be that way. Try on a different pair of sunglasses and you may be surprised by the results.
If you’d like help setting and achieving your health and wellness goals, please contact Jack Zahn at jack@trifitnesswbl.com to set up an appointment.