I always get excited every time I walk with my daughter on the Olympic Village seawall in Vancouver. I see people out jogging, doing sprints, riding bikes, kayaking… I love seeing people creating and developing their health.
Lately, I've noticed a lot more people out jogging and I'm told that the gyms and the pools are little more crowded as well.
Maybe you made some end of year resolutions about your health and lifestyle. If so, awesome! Making them and writing them down are the first steps to making your life better. Want to lose that holiday weight from last year? Run your first race? Have more consistent energy? Sleep soundly at night? Take more holidays?
Once you figure out WHAT you want to resolve to be, do and have to create a better lifestyle for you and your family, a key one word question that you’ve heard from every 3 year old, ever, needs to become clear in your mind: WHY.
Simon Sinek, in his brilliant best-selling book “Start With Why”, and in his TED Talk (which is the 3rd most viewed TED Talk of all time), explains that the WHY is more important than even the HOW or the WHAT.
If you don’t know why you want to do something, the moment you experience any challenges or resistance becomes an easy point to quit. Your “why” doesn’t need to be sexy or sound important to others or even make sense to others. If your “why” makes you feel something well up inside you and inspires you, you’re much more liekly to stick to the gameplan you set for yourself.
In old-school David Letterman style, here’s a Top 10 list to get your “why muscle” flexing.
So here are the Top 10 Reasons To Get Healthy And Be Awesome Today:
You only get one body and replacement parts are hard to come by.
I occasionally hear someone request a new body. Usually though, their first one is in trouble because of how it's been treated. The cool thing about your body, though, is that it has the ability to heal itself! Your body’s ability to heal and repair will astound you if you gave it what it needs to function normally.You can't go anywhere without your body.
Well, you can imagine, I guess, with the cool new Virtual Reality technologies… But this meat suit you walk around in is your vehicle to experience every sight, smell, touch, taste, sound and movement.Other people are counting on you.
This has been a big one for me since my daughter was born 6 months ago. I need to be there for her, so I need to be at my best. There are others that need you and you can't help them if you're in rough shape.You have a living to make.
What would you do if your health was such that you couldn't work? Gettign and staying healthy doesn’t only decrease sick days, but increases your productivity, work satisfaction, earning potential and can allow you to create a greater impact.You have fun things to do.
One of the most frustrating experiences is looking forward to something fun like a holiday, an awesome guys or girls night out or a birthday dinner only to have something pain or poor health that keeps you from being able to go. It feels good to feel good, and sucks to not. Period.The ground isn’t getting any closer.
There are lots of cool things on the ground that you might want to get to. If you don't take care of yourself, you may not be able to get down to them. That's where your feet are, where golf balls come to rest, where flowers and weeds tend to grow, and where your little kids are. Keys tend to fall there too. I'm sure you could come up with a longer list but you get the idea. The ground is a place you need to be sometimes.You don't know how long you will be around.
I know, as do you, that some people who have lived a lot longer than they thought they would and they wish they would have looked after themselves much better along the way. If you knew you’d live to 94 years old, when’s a good time to start to get healthy? You’re right. NOW. You have that opportunity.You don't always know what's around the corner.
If you were in the impending zombie apocalypse, you may need to be prepared for anything. Isn't life like a battle some of the time? Maybe you'll have an accident to recover from or have to run from one of those zombies. Wouldn't it be better if you were in good shape to begin with? You can do more of what you love, and you’re harder to kill… 😉There are little people watching.
One of the best reasons to create and develop your health is because you want your kids (or grandkids, or some other short person you like) to be good to themselves. Kids are sponges for what happens in their world and do what they see you do. Lead by example. They won’t do what you say unless you do what you do...Your life is a gift you want to share.
Best-selling author and world-famous strategist Tony Robbins describes that there are 6 Human Needs of our psychology. The last one is a need to contribute to something greater than yourself. Most anyone that’s ever asked if they were to strike it rich by winning the lottery and never had to “work” again that most people would begin work that inspires them that helps others. It’s tough to support and help others when you’re in need of support and help...
I hope that gets your “why” juices flowing. Write down a list of 3 to 5 of your biggest whys. Keep it plain sight on a note in your wallet, written on your bathroom mirror or as a note on your smartphone. Write it on your heart. Tatoo it on your soul.
Once that’s figured out, then you can go forward powerfully with the “what” and the “how”.
