We Had it Completely Wrong.
It is not military-style discipline, but self-reliance, that will form your body into the shape you want.
I have heard it so many times from clients: “It is easy for you, because you are so disciplined,” or “I wish I had your discipline.” Well, I have great news for all of you who believe you are predestined to be physically out of shape due to lack of discipline: it is not the discipline, but the desire to be free, that will get your body into shape. You see, diets are the opposite of freedoms: they restrict your food choices. I don’t work on my discipline; I simply make sure I always have options (versus being told what to do and what to eat), and then I choose the options that make me feel exactly the way I want to feel. It is not discipline that shapes my body; it is self-reliance on my love for my body. Once you love yourself enough, you don’t need to have the discipline to choose the option that makes you feel good, happy, and satisfied in that moment, the next day, or the next week.
I know this might be disappointing for some people, because some of my clients were disappointed too. They would rather work on their discipline (act under restrictions) than have their freedom of choice or rely on their own love and respect for their bodies.
Picture a mom who needs to stay up all night with a crying child. Which one requires more energy, and which one is limitless: getting up out of pure self-discipline, or out of love for the child? When a mother uses her love, the hard work doesn’t feel like a sacrifice — it feels always, always like love. Choosing the right food (healthy vs. unhealthy), taking care of the body (rest vs. overworking), and physical activity (exercising vs. the couch potato lifestyle) can’t be sustained through self-discipline, but only through self-reliance on choosing WHAT YOU WANT. However, the better question is: WHO do YOU choose to BE?
So, how do you shift your mind from ‘I need to look good, I need to follow this famous influencer’s diet, I need to sign up for my best friend’s workouts,’ etc., to ‘I love and respect my body so much that, no matter what, I will always, always treat it with love’? How can you be more like that mom who never stops loving her child — not even during those exhausting nights?
Here is an example of self-reliance on self-love. Let’s say you are following a 21-day fitness and diet program. On the 9th day, your work schedule changes, and you cannot get in the workout (yes, that specific workout which the program says you must do). Because of a long meeting, you cannot eat that healthy food which the program says you are supposed to have. No matter the strength of your discipline, there is nothing you can do. You cannot cancel the meeting, and you cannot change the schedule to get in your particular workout. So now, your super-discipline is not very helpful, and therefore, you experience a double failure in this type of situation. Not only are you unable to follow the program that day, but you also panic and punish yourself with food. However, if you had relied on your own self-love, you would have snacked on a quick protein bar or piece of fruit to calm the hanger, and then later you could have eaten a healthy dinner and used the day as a resting and recharging day, because that’s what your body deserves after such a long and stressful day: not the punishment, but the love. And that, my friend, is what I call FREEDOM OF CHOICE, or SELF-RELIANCE.
When you self-rely on self-love, you shift from survival mode into victorious mode. You see, you can’t be free if you are refusing your self-reliance. You can claim your freedom only if you rely on your own intuition, guidance, and love, and then make your own choices. Yes, it’s scary, but it’s the only path to true freedom. When you rely on your own love, you don’t wait for others to show you and tell you that you are good enough, smart enough, or pretty enough; you already KNOW the answer.
This self-love and self-reliant method will never fail you, not even during the most painful times. Losses and betrayals are like the most devastating storms, but if you rely on your own love, none of them will destroy you. On the contrary, you will be more motivated to take care of yourself (eat healthy and work out), because that is what love does: SHE kicks into second gear during the storms.
I studied physical education and sports and became a ‘fanatic’ about learning the human body inside and out: anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and microbiology. I thought if I knew everything about how the human body works, I could fully control it and get my own body into the best possible shape: basically, I would become CEO of my own body. Well, I got into the best shape, and I even competed in professional fitness competitions — but then, the pendulum swung all the way to the other side. The life storms came, and my discipline, knowledge, and degree were not enough to swing the pendulum back to the other side.
My eating was responding to my life’s storms. I had to dig deeper and search for help. You see, until then I was a nonbeliever, because I grew up in communism, which meant that I relied only on my own discipline and the choices of government officials. Eventually, I fell to my knees to pray, because there was nothing else upon which I could rely: my disciple had failed, and the choices of others were taking away my freedoms. The answer to my prayer to find the strength and discipline to eat healthy again and make the right choices was, “Your Love for yourself is stronger than the discipline of all other people combined.” After receiving that message, I expanded my knowledge about the human body, and ever since, I have been learning and researching about the mind and soul. I know that Love is God and God is Love. Since Love is infinite, now I understand why the message said that loving our bodies and relying on our self-love is stronger than the combination of the discipline of billions of people.
Therefore, now I know that knowledge of the human body is not enough if we want to conquer our bodies. The programs, the diets, the calorie counting, the food restrictions — none of these ‘new science body trends’ are enough to keep our bodies in healthy and happy shape. If we want to conquer our bodies, we must go deeper, farther, and beyond science, and rely on a much, much bigger source: it is called LOVE!
I am not the only one who says there is something more, beyond science.
“The more I study science, the more I believe in God.” ~ Albert Einstein
“If you study science deep enough and long enough, it will force you to believe in God.” ~ Lord William Kelvin
As a good and successful CEO relies on her own skills, wisdom, and intuition, so does CEO of her own body, mind, and soul. Self-reliance on your self-love is never waiting for others to see you as you really are. It is always KNOWING that you are a Perfect Masterpiece, and that, my friend, is a “monster CEO of her own life discipline!”
“The gift of mental power comes from God, Divine Being, and if we concentrate our minds on that truth, we become in tune with this great power.” ~ Nikola Tesla
Email me with any questions or comments at: heavenlybodyafter40@gmail.com
