Principle #6: Patience
And finally (drum roll please)…the last principle of a healthy lifestyle…patience (bet you didn’t guess this one). What is it with this society? Why does everything have to happen so quickly? There are commercials about diet pills, weight loss programs, and exercise equipment that will allow you to lose 5 pounds in a week or even more. Do you seriously believe this nonsense? If a magic pill or machine exists that makes weight loss easy then no one would be overweight, right?
The truth is that seeing the results of a healthy lifestyle requires patience. You can’t say, “Well, that didn’t work!” after a few weeks because you didn’t give your new lifestyle a chance. Your body needs time to reshape based on your new way of living. Take a deep breath, don’t weigh yourself every day (or multiple times a day), and let the time pass while you make healthy choices.
You will know that you have achieved a healthy lifestyle when exercising and eating healthy are the norm. When you miss a few workouts or eat a few too many splurge foods, you will desire getting back to normal and that is the definition of living a healthy lifestyle. Besides, we could all use a little patience…(Did I get that Guns and Roses’ song in your mind too?)