Just Do it!

As a child I grew up amongst the under-disciplined. As I remember it, when it came to being told “no”, either it didn’t happen or it didn’t last long. With food, with anything, if I threw a big enough tantrum, my mother would back down and I would get my way. As a kid I tried playing a bunch of instruments, from trumpet to piano to flute, but as soon as I felt challenged, I got frustrated or bored, and quit. No one made me stick with it.

 

As the adult of my own inner child, I’ve noticed lately that I’ve been making promises to myself, around my diet as well as other things in my life, and not trusting myself to be true to my word. Not trusting my “no” or my “yes” to stick. Not trusting myself to keep practicing no matter how challenging it may feel. I’ve been walking around longing for the discipline, for the commitment, the determination, my integrity. Feeling like a child in those moments, I want someone to make me “do it”, or “stop it”, but today that is not my mother’s job, it is mine. If I want it, I need to be it. As the saying goes, “if you want to be fed, be bread”.

 

This weekend I was complaining and expressing my frustration about not being able to do some more challenging yoga poses. Mid complaint my friend interrupted me to tell me to quit my whining about my desire to do yoga and just do it. I was initially a bit shocked by the command to just do it, but Nike hasn’t stuck with that ad campaign for no reason. It speaks to us. It speaks to the part of us that wants something for ourselves, that transcends our excuses and takes us beyond what we think we are and are not capable of, beyond whatever our parents did or did not teach us. In “just do it”, there are no conditions that need to be met before having what we want or being who we want to be. It is unconditional and it feels like freedom!

 

The interesting thing was as I got down onto the floor to practice the yoga poses I had been struggling with, I still couldn’t hold the poses, but in my focused determination I came closer to it than ever before. And it felt great because I wanted it and I was doing it!

 

Where have you been feeling like a child, looking outwardly and longing for something to change, waiting for permission, or encouragement, or discipline, or competence to have what you want, to be who you want to be? Have you been conveniently blaming your parents as the excuse that keeps you from creating the relationship with food and life and the body you want? Who have you been blaming as you find yourself feeling challenged? Are you willing to stop hiding behind your complaints and be the parent to yourself you've always wanted? If you want to be active, if you want to stop eating bagels for breakfast, if you want to eat less sugar, if you want to sleep more, cook more…just do it!

 

How does it feel?