Perseverance

per·se·ver·ance n. 1. Steady persistence in adhering to a course of action, a belief, or a purpose; steadfastness. 2. persistent determination. 3. the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior.

This is the word that I am working off today. Perseverance. Keeping on when I don't feel like keeping on. Doing it when I don't want to, when I am discouraged, when I am too tired to, when I forgot the reason I am doing this in the first place, and most of all doing it when it gets too hard and the old ways are calling and seem so much easier. What is the result of perseverance? Habit.

hab·it: noun 1 : bodily appearance or makeup especially as indicative of one's capacities and condition 2 : a settled tendency or usual manner of behavior 3 a : a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or physiological exposure that shows itself in regularity or increased facility of performance b : an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary c : addiction 4 : characteristic mode of growth or occurrence

Habit is what I can fall back on when I "don't want to" Habit is what will take me through, will over-ride the thought processes of wanting to go backwards. Habit will take me through all the justifications and temptations...if I let it.

All my motivation and energies seemed drained today. My concentration levels are nill. It is so easy to go back into old habits. This is week 3, they say it takes 3 months (12 weeks) to create a habit (some say 21 days, but I find that is really not true for me)...that is a lot of perseverance. For me, week 3 of anything is always the make or break week, whether it is a new job, new art project, or trying to create change in my life. So this is make or break week for me, but I also have to remember that I have only 9 more weeks before the changes become habits. This makes me wonder how many things at a time to change. It feels that if I don't change everything at once then it will take years to get to my goals. But trying to change everything at once seems overwhelming when you put it into the light of trying to break old habits and create new ones. How many can I actually concentrate on at the same time and actually be successful at? Because so much of my eating is based also in emotional issues to the point of it being an eating disorder, I also find that I am needing to deal with the issues behind the eating as well. How much can one work on at the same time and actually not become overwhelmed to the point of giving up?

This is what Ellie Rogers over at Yahoo Health says about creating a habit of exercise
http://health.yahoo.com/ency/healthwise/ug1857

Making fitness a habit
Until physical activity becomes a habit for you, the effort to remain active may seem difficult.

• When you first start an exercise program, try to exercise at the same time every day.
• Consider your physical activity efforts a scheduled part of your day
• Do your physical activity regularly for at least 3 months.

Experts say that it takes about 3 months of repetition to form a habit. For some people, 3 months is not long enough to form the habit. Changing seasons and weather may interfere with establishing a habit. Keep it up until you don't think about it as an extra part of your day.I know that this is about exercise, but it is also about creating habit.

Of course I want to make exercise a habit in my life, bur right now I am concentrating on recognizing hunger and only eating when I am hungry. In essence I am retraining my body, mind and emotions, to create a new habit of only expecting food, thus wanting food only when I am hungry. I also, over the years have trained my body to expect food during certain activities, whether I am hungry or not. Like reading, watching TV, or when I am bored, lonely, unhappy, happy, angry, alive, awake, …you get it…anytime, except when I am hungry. But maybe that is because I have always put food in my body at a constant rate and have never actually felt the sensation of hunger…well at least not for many years.

Paige Waehner over at About.com also has some great things to say about creating the habit of exercise, which can be translated into other applications of forming new healthy habits.

Successful Weight LossFrom Paige Waehner,Your Guide to Exercise. http://exercise.about.com/cs/weightloss/a/weightsuccess.htm

Ingredients for Success
Commitment
· Plan and Prepare
· Motivate
Yourself
· Hold Yourself Accountable.
· Remember Your Goals
Discipline
· Make Exercise a Habit
· Know the Consequences
· Get Some Help
· Make a Deal With Yourself
Honesty
· How much time will you really spend exercising?
· Are you willing to do what it takes to reach your goals
· Can you accept failure?
Flexibility
· Change your workouts when necessary
· Do shorter workouts
· Be creative
Consistency

I know all this, of course, but having to actually put this in action in my life has me seeing it all in a different way. I like Steven Covey's definition of habit:

Covey defines a “habit” as the intersection of knowledge, skill and desire.
Knowledge is the what to do and why
Desire is the motivation
Skill is the how to do.
http://www.psychicsahar.com/artman/publish/article_59.shtml