Sometimes you just don’t want to eat well or think about cooking healthy food. Sound familiar?
It’s like a visceral thing inside of you that rebels against any notion you may have to be healthy. And this can go on for days, weeks, months, even years.
So what to do in these moments? What can you do to overhaul that motivation and get yourself eating and cooking better?
The first thing to grasp is that motivation alone isn’t going to get you there.
Motivation is a powerful emotion which comes from within us. It means that we have to dig deep, and brings up words like ‘battle’ and ‘mountain’. And any of these words are negative and instantly put us in a downward, victim spiral. Subconsciously, it just feels like really hard work.
So what can we do to instigate that motivation from a place where it comes easily and naturally?
Follow these simple tips:
1. Look at the bigger picture. Instead of fighting against the motivation and trying to ‘break through’, take a 180 degreee view on it. Look back and all around you. What’s been going on in your life up to this point that has made you feel like this? And what’s going on in your life right now that’s meaning you aren’t motivated?
2. Get a pen and paper and write down your answers. If you say ‘too much work’, write down all the words which come to you as you think of what ‘too much work’ means to you right now.
Or maybe it’s ‘lack of energy’. So write down why you have a lack of energy right now.
Is it that you are running around looking after everyone else? Is it that you are rushing in the door from work? Is it that you are trying to eat healthily and not eat too much, but it’s making you reach for white toast and peanut butter instead?
Whatever it is, write down words which you associate with these problems and how they make you feel. Let the pen free flow and write as if no-one will read it. Be honest.
3. Read what you’ve written. Is there something there which you have the control to change? Is there something that you need to address urgently so that you have more time or energy? Is there an area that you could take less control of in your life so that you free up more time and head space to prioritise your health and your eating well?
What tweaks could you make to your daily schedule?
Once you raise your awareness of what is making you feel like this, and break it down into smaller words and emotions, you’ll have a clearer idea of where that bigger feeling of ‘I have no motivation to eat well’ actually comes from.
I hope that helps. If you can’t work out what it is that’s getting in your way to stay motivated to eat well, or if that exercise has just opened up a can of worms, you might find it easier to work on it with someone else. Don’t hesitate to book a free discovery call with me using the link below and we can start having a look into it for you.
