Things My Dog Has Taught Me #2

The weather is never too bad to go to the park.

Diet Measurements Week 6

Back on track for this week, although the numbers look much better in the middle of the week instead of after my scheduled binge day. But I can fit into the khakis I bought two years ago, and that was one of my original goals. So yay, me :)

Measurements Week 6
Weight - 174.6
Body Fat % - 17.4
Total Inches (TI) - 141.75

Have a good week everyone!

The Rider and the Elephant

I've been reading an interesting book lately, Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. In the book, the author likens a person's willpower to a rider of an elephant, the elephant being a person's emotions and instincts, the rider being a person's rational mind. There have been many terms for these parts of the psychic apparatus. Freud called them the id and the ego.


What is interesting to note is that there have been studies that show that willpower is a finite resource. Like a muscle, it can be exhausted, giving free reign to the elephant. The main premise of the book is that the best way to change a behavior is to get the elephant and the rider going in the same direction, otherwise the rider will become exhausted and the elephant will return to its prior behavior. Sound familiar? Yo-yo dieting anyone?


So, how do you change the direction of the elephant? You can't appeal to it rationally. That's the rider, remember? You have to appeal to a person emotionally. In The 4-Hour Body, Tim Ferriss refers to this as a Harajuku Moment, or what Malcom Gladwell referred to as a Tipping Point. It is the point when a person emotionally buys into the idea the rider is presenting.


I had my Harajuku Moment last December. I broke a tooth while eating breakfast, chewing a piece of bacon. It was at that point that I realized that if I didn't take better care of myself then things would keep breaking, things much more serious than a tooth. A silly little moment, but it caused me to reevaluate my whole lifestyle, and brought me to the conclusion that I have to start taking better care of myself. Rationally, I always knew I should, but it took this to get the elephant to agree.


Was this a true moment or did I manufacture it? Really, does it matter? It got me to change my behavior. If you want to change something, find an emotional reason to do it. Save the planet, see a grandchild graduate high school, complete a marathon, avoid a dentist. Find an emotional response and tie your willpower to it. That is an unbeatable combination.

Diet Measurements Week 5

Not sure what happened this week. I thought I was being good, but obviously nefarious forces are plotting against me. I have a list of suspects lined up for your perusal:

Suspect Number One:

I love these things. They are allowed on the diet but, serving size?
I checked the can: One serving 170 calories. Serving size, 18 pieces.
Oops.





Suspect Number Two:

A glass of wine in the evening might be wrecking my diet. Going to try without.











Suspect Three:

You can never completely rule out clowns.










Suspect Four:

Ok, I'm pretty sure this last one is off the hook.








Measurements Week Five:

Weight - 176.2
Body Fat % - 17.9
Total Inches - 143.5

Have a good week everyone.

Things My Dog Has Taught Me #1

It's impossible to poop with a tennis ball in your mouth.

The Healer's Wife Part 7 of 7

The sun was sinking low, painting the western sky in shades of pink and orange, when there came the sound of small footsteps inside the house. A little girl bound barefoot through the door, paused briefly, her face lighting at the sight of her father. She rushed to his arms, squealing with delight as he lifted her high into the air.

Her husband followed onto the porch, reached forward to accept the father's hand. "Thank you," the man said through tears. "Thank you so much. Please, allow me to pay you."

Her husband waved the notion away, a gesture she'd seen many times before. "No need," he said. "Be a good father to that little girl."

"I will" said the father. "I will." He turned to the woman. "Thank you." He then walked down the steps into the street, the little girl waving over his shoulder.

She watched them go, the father and the little girl. It was the right thing to do, she realized. You were right. It was the right thing. She felt her husband's gaze upon her now, his gentle smile directed toward her.

"May I help you?" he asked. "I don't believe we've met."

The Healer's Wife Part 6 of 7

After she had drawn her promise from her husband, she had gone door to door throughout the village, explaining to all that lived there the reasons for her husband's retirement. She had worried that the villagers would not understand, that they would come running after the first accident or illness, but her fears were unfounded. All knew that wizards paid a price for their magic, some a steep price, but they were shocked to discover the price her husband paid for his. Shocked and humbled. Never once had they thought to ask what was given, and so her husband had paid.

He had paid with sunny days and rainy, paid with childhood dreams and childhood friends. He had paid with his son's first step, his mother's smile, his father's nod. He'd paid with sunsets and sunrises, with wind in his hair, cool water on his feet. He'd paid with sorrow and pain and joy and grief, had paid with all of these, paid with all but her, had clung to her, and for a while they had been happy, enjoying what days they had left.