Susan L. Holmberg, MS, CNS

May 20, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Sun, 20 May 2012 05:00:13 +0000

If I put exercise off, I will undoubtedly find a way to convince myself that I have other things that are way more critical and must take priority – when the truth is I have managed to get most everything done for the last 20 years with some form of exercise in there virtually every day. But that little bit of delay gives my couch potato alter ego too much time to do her work. I am buying into “I don’t fel like it” with my very first decision of the day. Ever heard that black dog, white dog story? …That I have a black dog and white dog warring inside me all the time, and the one who wins is the one I feed? The decision to blow it off is starting out the day by feeding the black dog.

I especially hate when I leave it till after I am home, and God forbid, promise myself I will do it after dinner. Who am I kidding? I can’t think of a single instance when I actually followed through on that one. I don’t know about you, but I reeeeeally want to relax then. I want to be done with my day.

May 19, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Sat, 19 May 2012 05:00:23 +0000

I can make exercise something I associate with great feelings like pride, relief, self-respect, youthfulness, or something I associate with dread and guilt – all by when I schedule it. I can spend the day glorying in how proud of myself I am and how glad that it is done. Or, I can spend the next 8 hours dreading it and coming up with 1000 reasons why I can’t fit it in.

May 17, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Thu, 17 May 2012 05:00:13 +0000

The first 10 minutes is always murder – for everyone. My legs feel like lead and I always think I must be coming down with something. I’ve learned not to take it so seriously. “Yeah, this is how I always feel when I first start…interesting. I can’t wait till I am at the other end of this run/walk/class and feel how I predictably self-empowered and proud of myself I feel at the end.”

May 16, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Wed, 16 May 2012 05:00:44 +0000

There is an expression they use in 12 Step Programs when encouraging someone to own the consequences of indulging before they actually do it. They say, “Think it through”. They mean, of course, to think through to the predictable negative consequences. But I can use this in a different way. I can think through to that indescribably wonderful feeling I have when I am done with exercising. The pain of arising or of those first 10 minutes truly pales in comparison.

May 15, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Tue, 15 May 2012 05:00:15 +0000

In fact, too tired, too stressed and too busy just can’t count. When would at least one of these things not be true? Interesting to note, but not any more relevant than those circumstances would be to my decision to go to work. Interesting that I didn’t get enough sleep last night. Unfortunate even. But not a reason why I would not show up for my job.

Case in point: One of my friend’s grandmother had 16 kids. When my friend had her first baby and was totally sleep deprived during that first year, she asked her Grandma how she had dealt with sleep deprivation while raising 16 children. Her grandmother replied, “I pretended I slept.” Not a bad philosophy.

May 14, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:00:02 +0000

I would weigh about 30 lbs. more than I do now eating what I eat now if I didn’t exercise. I do an average of about 300 exercise calories a day. Do the math. 300 X 365 days, divided by 3500…30 lbs. That is actually easier for me than maintaining the budget for my weight without it. It buys me a bit of indulgence over the weekends that I could not “afford” without it.

Before I became an exerciser, I would have rather starved than take a walk, but once I got it rolling (and earned how to keep it rolling), I find that it is actually easier to exercise and eat. I does so much more for me than just giving me some caloric flexibility.

May 13, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Sun, 13 May 2012 05:00:59 +0000

Often, if I will just do a token something in the morning, like half my walk or the first segment of an exercise DVD, it is just enough to get me to do some additional little piece later. So by day’s end I end up doing my whole workout. The little piece later doesn’t feel like any big deal either once I did half in the morning.

May 12, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Sat, 12 May 2012 05:00:41 +0000

I have found that working out on Mondays makes a difference for the whole rest of the week. It is like I either got on the exercise track or the couch potato track for the week. So a decision about Monday is often a decision about the whole week. You know, oddly enough, I never say that about a meal. I never say or even think, “I think I will skip dinner today. I can always eat tomorrow”.

May 11, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Fri, 11 May 2012 05:00:40 +0000

It seems to me that once I accept that I am going to have to do (forever) some things that are hard for me, like exercise regularly or not eat all the donuts I want in general, then the only question to ask myself is, “Do I want it to get harder or easier?” I hold the key to that. Some mornings when it is a particular push to get up tto exercise (usually because I went to bed too late), the only thing that gets me out of bed is this question, “If I don’t go today, will tomorrow be harder or easier?” I certainly don’t need this to be any harder.

May 10, 2012

Susan Holmberg — Thu, 10 May 2012 05:00:16 +0000

If I chose to, I can teach myself to argue rationally back. If I listen to my self talk, then I can see how I promise, excuse and rationalize myself out of things. I usually have to do this out of context later though. But, eventually I have taught myself to listen to myself while I am actually doing the rationalizing. I think most of us have issues like this already in our lives where we have learned how to talk ourselves into dong “the right thing”, but we just don’t realize it because the conversation is now automatic. Like going to work when you really don’t feel like it. Like not screaming at your kids when you really want to. Like not buying a donut when you buy your coffee. That new “special, time-limited, seasonal” donut that you have never tried at Dunkin Donuts catches your attention (as it is intended to), and in that split second, you have a quick review of your history with donuts, and manage not to buy it. Once you have done that a few times, these conversations become so automatic you don’t even notice them. Listen some time.

Case in Point: Rationalization: I think I will skip today. I can always go tomorrow. The truth: if I don’t go today it, I am even less likely to go tomorrow. If I go today, it will be just a tiny bitateasier tomorrow.