Today, I’d like to discuss Sabotage Thought Number 7 – The Assumption Excuse. It sounds like this:

 “I’ve already showered, so no point in exercising now”. Get your exercise in, even if it’s just walking 10,000 steps that day – something you can do without working up a sweat.

Or:

“I’m getting home later than usual, so no point in trying to exercise now”. The truth is, you can still usually get in at least 15-20 minutes of some kind of endurance exercise so you don’t lose momentum. Skipping one day makes it so much easier to skip two, then three… and before you know it, you haven’t exercised in 6 months. You know how easily that can happen. So, when you’re time-crunched, do a scaled down exercise routine to prevent you from losing momentum.

Here’s another Assumption Excuse:

“I already ate the top of the muffin, I might as well eat the rest of it”. You’re at a business meeting and you’re getting hungry – and all that’s available are donuts and muffins. Okay – have the top of the muffin. That should satisfy you. You don’t need to eat the bottom just because you ate the top.

Or:

“I had the first forkful of birthday cake, I might as well have the whole piece and enjoy some ice cream with it while I’m at it”.

Rr:

“I gave up eating donuts three years ago, I think I can have one the odd time now.” (Then it becomes a regular thing.) You have to guard your wellness habits tightly or the old bad habits can easily sneak back into your life. Don’t assume you have them locked down for life and that you can now occasionally have that French Crueller – or piece of cheesecake – or an order of French fries.That can easily become a habit of giving yourself permission on a more and more regular basis to do more of the same. Don’t assume you won the whole fight just because you’ve consistently won a number of battles over the past year or two. Bottom line: Don’t let those bad habits creep back in because you assumed you have it all under control.

Remember that 95% of people who lose weight, regain all the weight they lost within 2 years. And only about 20% of the population gets the recommended amount of physical activity each week. That percentage hasn’t changed in many years. You need to remain vigilant about our wellness intentions. Keep that daily wellness checklist going no matter how long you’ve been at it. It’s something I still do myself after more than 35 years of adopting solid health-promoting behaviors. Sometimes we get so impressed with ourselves, take we take a victory lap in advance of winning the game. Make sure you’re not eating high-fat pastries, ice cream, French fries etc. while taking your victory lap, after losing some weight, reducing your waistline, lowering your cholesterol or blood sugar, and so on.

Sabotage Thought Number 7 is “The Assumption Excuse”. Don’t give yourself permission to start deviating from your plan because you assume you have it all under control, or that in a particular instance you got a bit derailed so you might as well finish what you started and eat the whole piece of cake, the whole muffin, the whole bowl of ice cream, the whole order of French fries, or skip the entire workout for the day.

Don’t let The Assumption Excuse rob you of the body and health you know you deep down you want and can achieve.

Eat Smart, Live Well, Look Great!

Dr. James Meschino
DC,MS, ROHP