The magic beans of training and choice?!
All, if not most of us have tried a fad diet, multiple different training routines and various pieces of ‘wonder kit’ yet we are all still looking for that quick fix…all in one magic bean.
The ‘fence’ in this situation is that there is no quick fix all in one magic bean, sorry guys! The hurdle however, is that it can all start to work if you simply master the choices you make.
We make hundreds of choices every day. Some we procrastinate over for days if not months at a time. Others, more often than not we make in a split second, usually because “so and so did it first.”
A snap poorly judged choice is a wasted opportunity to better yourself and that’s the end goal we all share and have in common. After all we are all trying to better ourselves somehow, in one form or another, be that spiritually, mentally or physically. This can’t be argued with as it’s absolutely the reason why you joined our club.
So what are choices when you stop for a second and actually think about them? The dictionary can define this process as:
‘An act of choosing between two or more possibilities and the right or ability to choose.’
Summed up, choices are actually a luxury, if you have a choice you have options and when you have options there are multiple gains to be made. However you must learn to stay cool and not feel under pressure to make a snap decision. Positive choices made are an opportunity to better yourself, to pass go and collect £200 worth of winning at life!
Marginal gains make choices work
When you apply the theory of marginal gains to your choice selection re an active and healthy lifestyle the process becomes much simpler and makes absolute sense.
Marginal gains works from making lots of smaller incremental increases to make a greater overall change or increase.
Therefore, if you can make one good diet choice, a good lifestyle choice and one good behavioural choice every day that’s a small % daily increase in your general wellbeing which in turn will make you feeling better increasing your concentration and allow you to work harder. The benefits from this can then become endless.
Example.
A good dietary choice can be as simple as only having the Mars bar as your treat when Game of Thrones is on and leave the family size bar of Cadburys, tub of Ben and Jerry’s and Cinema styled toffee popcorn for another time, that’s a diet % increase.
Add a behavioural choice such as choosing to rebel against your inner child and going to bed an hour earlier, rather than waiting till you fall asleep on the sofa. That’s a positive % increase and a better quality of sleep.
Choose to get off two stops before your scheduled tube station and do the unthinkable in London, walk to your destination! That can add 30 minutes+ to your daily step count each day and again that’s a % increase in your daily well-being.
Make the small changes and let the small rewards accumulate into a big improvement each month, every month. The results as we are seeing with many of our members who are embracing this approach can be amazing.
A little food for thought I hope where can you make small changes and easy beneficial choices. So in summary here are my magic beans of mastering choices.
Magic bean No 1: Take time and make thoughtful choices!
Magic bean No 2: ‘Weigh-up’ up the personal gains. What do you gain from your choice and what do you lose from not choosing the other(s)?
Magic bean No 3: Never make food choices when you are hungry
Magic bean No 4: Are you going to regret your choice? Aim never to regret even if you have to be sensible and boring from time to time.
Magic bean No 5: Don’t let others make your choices for you! THEY ARE YOURS, for YOU to benefit from so please tell Sally to go and make her own choices.
Magic bean No 6: Make ONE food choice a day that just makes you happy and that doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be unhealthy, it’s your choice at the end of the day! This means be realistic and go for small changes that last.
The basic truth then is you will invariably live longer! Wow, that’s powerful stuff….
Will
