FORGIVE YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS

Nobody’s perfect (except God).  We all make mistakes.  Learn from your mistakes, try not to repeat them, and move on.  Perfectionism is all very well (I’m inclined that way myself) when it makes you strive for excellence, but when you don’t forgive your own transgressions, it’s too easy to get stuck in a negative cycle like this:

1)       you screw up and eat something you shouldn’t, or miss a workout, or whatever

2)       you beat yourself up about it (“I screwed up again!”)

3)       you feel like a failure (“I’ll never get this right”)

4)       you think, “I’ve ruined this day, so I might as well have another (chocolate bar, or whatever)”

5)       you feel even worse about yourself (“I’m out of control!”)

6)       you screw up again

7)       and so on

This kind of cycle will keep you going in circles instead of moving toward your goal.  A more productive approach would be something like this:

1)       you screw up

2)       you notice the mistake

3)       you learn from the mistake (with a realization like: “Oh, I tend to snack when I watch TV”)

4)       you make a plan for how to deal with similar situations in the future (“I’ll walk on my treadmill instead of snacking while I watch TV”)

5)       you stick to your eating, exercise, or other plans for the rest of the day

6)       you feel good about yourself (“I’m on my way!”)

7)       and so on

Hint:  if sticking to your eating, exercise, or any other plan for a whole day seems like too gargantuan a task, concentrate on sticking to the plan for an hour.  Or 15 minutes.  Or 5 minutes. 

So many times I see people demonstrate far more tolerance and understanding towards other people than they ever give themselves.  Be kind to yourself!

Jean

Good luck Nicki! You'll do great!
Matt