Are you ready to shift gears and take control of your health? Join me as I navigate the key to being motivated to make lifestyle changes. I share personal and professional insights and experiences, and offer you the tools you need to steer yourself towards a healthier, happier lifestyle. I explore the power of motivation and how it impacts our journey towards change.
I also discuss the importance of staying strong, both physically and mentally, and discuss how diet, exercise, and good sleep can be your best allies in this journey. I also delve into the risks associated with not staying physically strong, like the likelihood of falls and other health complications.
Lastly, I talk about how sometimes the road to change can be challenging. I share my personal approach to staying motivated and committed to my health, and hopefully inspire you to do the same.
Learn more about Fiona's speaking, radio and consultation services at Informed Health: https://informedhealth.com.au/
Sign up to receive our newsletter by clicking here.
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Credit for the music used in this podcast:
The Beat of Nature
Are you ready to shift gears and take control of your health? Join me as I navigate the key to being motivated to make lifestyle changes. I share personal and professional insights and experiences, and offer you the tools you need to steer yourself towards a healthier, happier lifestyle. I explore the power of motivation and how it impacts our journey towards change.
I also discuss the importance of staying strong, both physically and mentally, and discuss how diet, exercise, and good sleep can be your best allies in this journey. I also delve into the risks associated with not staying physically strong, like the likelihood of falls and other health complications.
Lastly, I talk about how sometimes the road to change can be challenging. I share my personal approach to staying motivated and committed to my health, and hopefully inspire you to do the same.
Learn more about Fiona's speaking, radio and consultation services at Informed Health: https://informedhealth.com.au/
Sign up to receive our newsletter by clicking here.
Instagram
Facebook
LinkedIn
Credit for the music used in this podcast:
The Beat of Nature
Welcome to the Wellness Connection podcast with Fiona Kane. I'm your host, Fiona Kane, and today I'm going to be talking about motivation how to get motivation, in particular, in regards to looking after your health. Now, in regards to motivation, there's a few things to look at in regards to motivation for your health. So, firstly, what I would say is most people will not be motivated to do any changes to their health, like to actually do lifestyle changes to help them with their health, and they say actually have an issue, or acknowledge that they have an issue. So it could be both right, but essentially, if you don't think there's anything wrong, why are you going to be motivated to make any kind of change? So you have to acknowledge or believe or know that there's something wrong. Or, in some cases, people are actually motivated by maintaining their health, which is fantastic. You've got great health and you want to maintain it. But those people there's not as many of those people as a great thing. So there's a percentage of people who, yes, you will be motivated to maintain health. So you don't have to have anything wrong. Great, very good, and actually, if everyone could take a leaf from their book, that would be amazing. But most of us human beings don't pay attention to our health until we start to lose it. So, essentially, to make the lifestyle changes, to get motivation to make changes, you have to believe that you need to make a change. So whether or not you believe you need to make a change to maintain your health or whether or not you believe that you need to make a change to fix or improve your health depends on where you're at right. However, you're not going to encourage someone to or motivate someone if they don't believe they need to change. So that's the whole kind of stop bashing head up against a big wall if you're trying to convince somebody else of whether or not they should or shouldn't be motivated to do something to look after their health.
Fiona Kane:Now, in regards to looking after your health and being motivated to do something, it really, for many of us, it is actually about the discomfort of being where we are. So for a lot of people we're actually motivated by you know, that's just where I am, is so uncomfortable, for whatever reason. That is, whether or not you're feeling sick, or you're feeling tired, or you're sick of feeling weak or whatever your physical thing that's going on for you, or it could be emotional health thing where you know when you feel better, when you're eating well and when you're moving your body or when you're sleeping, and so you kind of noticing that your mental health starts to fall apart when you're not looking after yourself. So when I actually think about motivation to look after my health, the other thing, too, actually is, before I go into my motivation, the other thing is that we do okay. So I said that first of all, you have to Believe or identify a reason to do it, like it would either be that you want to maintain your health, all that you want to fix your health. The other thing, though, is you have to also believe that you can do something about it and that there is, you know, that eating well will be helpful or sleeping well will be helpful, that kind of thing, and I now, because I've had a lot of experience with it personally and also with many, many clients over the years I have seen the power of sleep and and eating well and moving your body and changing the way that you think about things and all of those those kinds of things. I have actually seen it. So I absolutely have no, no question or no issues around believing that making lifestyle changes makes a lot of difference, absolutely does. I've seen it probably thousands of times.
Fiona Kane:I know there was a time in my life where I didn't, I know. Certainly when I was very young and I was eating a really poor diet and my health wasn't very good. I didn't have a reference point for good health and so I just didn't understand why will, if I stop eating the chocolate I like, what difference is academic or whatever? I just I really just did not understand. And so Some people they just might not be in a situation when they've got enough knowledge or awareness around the fact that I see a lifestyle change can help them. So he's possible to be in that situation, because I certainly was. Many people are.
Fiona Kane:So not only do you need to identify that there's something you want to either change or maintain or whatever it is around your health, but also to be motivated. It's helpful if you actually believe that change is going to make a difference, because if you don't believe that you're not going to make, you're going to do it right. And so to get motivated, I suppose, look around and see other people who are doing, other people who are making changes and what difference it makes. You know I've, over my life, I've read Hundreds of, probably, autobiographies and things like that, where I read how people make changes in their life and health changes, but all sorts of changes, and so, yeah, it's very powerful. Or you listen to podcasts or go on YouTube or whatever it is, but there's certainly a lot of people doing it. So if you can't believe that, you're not sure about that, get motivated by other people's stories, because sometimes that will help motivate you.
Fiona Kane:However, what motivates me personally? So, first of all, I would say to you that Sometimes we feel more motivated than others. It's just how it is, like a some, some days I don't feel motivated at all and other days I feel very motivated, and you know it can. It changes depending on lots of things. I know the last few years because I have been grieving and dealing with some other Sort of changes and issues in my life that have I've really struggled with. I have had a certain level of depression and I have always felt motivated. So I don't. Just one thing is I don't rely on motivation has been the only reason and anyway, I do something. Sometimes I just could have set myself a minimum, just a minimum of what I expect of myself and showing up for myself a certain amount of times in a certain amount of ways. So sometimes I'm not motivated at all, but I have Told myself that I will show up for myself, and so I just do so. I show up, not being motivated. So, sometimes not motivated, show up anyway. Sometimes you're more motivated than others, but what does ultimately motivate me? There's a few things that motivate me. So one thing that motivates me is Understanding that I'm getting older and I have a lot of scientific knowledge, but also personal knowledge from either my own experience or, again, seeing other people in my life as they have age.
Fiona Kane:I've got a lot of experience and knowledge around what happens to our bodies as we age and, yes, I think the aging is a normal part of life. However, there's aging where you don't move your body and you don't eat well and you don't look after yourself, and there's aging when you do all those things and to me, you can make a. What I've seen is you can make a huge difference by maintaining your muscle mass, by maintaining your bone mass, which requires healthy diet, exercise and good sleep. All those three things are important. For all of those things, we actually need to stay, have a level of strength. We need to stay strong, we need to stay stable. So, essentially, as we age, when we get to, especially when we get now, sort of late years, one of the biggest risks to someone after over a certain age is if they have some sort of fall. So we get on, we can get on steady on our feet and we can fall. And when we fall, if we do something like we break a hip or something like that, it can be catastrophic right.
Fiona Kane:So it's actually staying, being at a state, keep my balance, been at a hold, my body up, being able to be, to be independent that's actually one of the big things that motivates me. Say, okay, I know, if I just sit down and see I've got a job, or sit down, right, I sit down all day. So I know that if I do is sit down all day, it's gonna get harder and harder for me to move my body, and it does. My body, see, is up the less I use it, the less I use it, the less it functions right. So that whole if you don't use it, you lose it thing is actually quite true. So I know that my body starts to seize up if I'm not using it. I know that I have more pain if I'm not using my body and I know that I just a whole bunch of functions and things in my body that feel better when I'm exercising then when I'm not.
Fiona Kane:And I also know my mental health improves when I'm moving my body because essentially when you're moving your body you're able to push those hormones, those those stress hormones, through and out of your system and so we're kind of able to get emotions and hormones and also things moving through. I'm moving more regularly. There's a bunch of things I could listen to many things. I'm not going to do that right here right now, but essentially in regards to exercise. But essentially I know that if I don't move, it does it like the really good chance that I will lose it or it'll be have my functionality will be reduced dramatically and it will and it happens quite fast once you get to a certain age. So I'm really really motivated by what I don't want to happen. And you know things happen and we get older and life happens and we can get sick and all of that. So this is by no means shaming anyone who has any of these issues. It's just kind of I have a knowledge around it and whatever I can avoid, I will. And then sometimes you know, life happens okay, that is what it is. So for me, I'm very much motivated by that.
Fiona Kane:I'm also motivated by how I feel. So if I like, as I was talking about before, if you're not feeling well, so if I'm actually not feeling well, it depends the situation. Sometimes not feeling well means I need to rest, and sometimes that is what looking after my body looks like, by the way. So looking after body looks like lots of different things, but sometimes it's like I don't feel good and I know that. That's why I know I need to exercise. So because I'm feeling sad, or because I'm feeling sore, or, you know, because I'm feeling tired. So sometimes those for me assigns that I need to exercise, or they might be science and I need to eat, you know. So certainly, if I'm really really kind of not feeling grounded, or if I'm a blood sugar levels dropping and kind of going off over the place may energy is going all over the place I know that I need to eat protein, right. So there's just things I know I need to do. Or if I've had a late night, I know I need to make up for that, because I just know that I can't function on late night after late night after late night, right? So essentially, you know, what motivates me is I want to feel good within my body, I want to have fairly good mental health, and I know that when I'm feeling depressed and those sorts of things, it gets worse when I'm not doing anything to look after myself. So I show up for myself, for myself, right?
Fiona Kane:Also motivated, like I said, by all of the things as I get older, that I would like to keep at bay for as long as possible. The longer I can have an independent, functional life, the happier I will be, and I'm sure everyone would love to have that, and it doesn't happen for everyone. But if there's a chance that you can make it happen, I'm going to do that. I'm going to do my best, right. So I'm very aware of that and I want to maintain my function and independence as I get older.
Fiona Kane:And so, really, the other thing too is I was talking to a client about this the other day is when there's a few things around this, okay, but certainly when we do exercise, when we feel stronger physically, it actually helps you feel stronger emotionally. So there is something about feeling stronger physically that actually has an effect and overall effects that helps you just feel strong in general. And even simple things that might sound like it's silly, but it's not silly is being able to open up a jar right or do basic things. That is we think, you know. We think that that's something that we can all do, but it's really not something that we can all do. I struggle with a lot of them myself, which is one of the reasons I'm showing up to the gym, because I'm already struggling right.
Fiona Kane:So it is the ability to distribute, do something for yourself, but also the feeling that you get when you feel strong, when you inhabit your body and you feel kind of strong in your body and you can get move around and you can move around confidently and not falling over and all that kind of stuff. There's a lot to be said for how that feels, how that feels to have a certain level of strength and to feel good in your body that way. So it's sort of also just the feeling good for feeling strong, but then there's also the feeling good for showing up for yourself. So I've talked to you about that before, about showing up for myself or showing up for yourself. And there is something about a case. Remember, I've told you before the relationship you have with your body is the longest relationship you're gonna have in your life. Are you you and yourself right? That's it's you and your body and you. So really, we need to make that body last for as long as we possibly can.
Fiona Kane:And what I know is that when I show up for myself, I have more trust in myself and I like myself more because I showed up for myself. So there's also something about you. Know, if you think about it, if you were dealing with a friend and your friend just constantly just didn't show up for you and your friend had no regard for your health, no regard for any of your needs, no, no regard for you, wasn't thinking about you at all, and this just didn't show up all of the time, you really wouldn't have a lot of trust for that friend, right? But then, with that person's is showing up for you and really cares about your health and really wants to support you and support your health, then you do get a lot of trust in that person. Well, the same thing goes for you. So when you show up for yourself on a regular basis, you develop A lot more trust for yourself and a lot better relationship with yourself. And this is a trust relationship now showing up.
Fiona Kane:And the other thing is just showing up. It doesn't have to be perfect. So I might say on a day that I'm really really tired, like some days, I don't go to the gym, I don't do everything all the time. I'm not pretending I have all this perfect. I do most of the time, right. But the other thing to is that if I'm really really tired, I can't. If it's I haven't slept at all or whatever, sometimes I would choose having a nap over going to the gym with. That's the choice. And I'm really tired sometimes that's what I need, but sometimes it's I need to go to the gym, I need to move my body and I know that's what I need and I show up to the gym.
Fiona Kane:But the other thing to is I might say, have a minimum for myself. So I say to myself okay, I'm going to go to the gym and I've kind of got different machines I use and whatever, so I can do my walk and I'm gonna do this and do that, right. So I might actually just commit to myself before I go that I'm gonna do three things, or even just one thing. I might just. You know, I'm just gonna do the treadmill, that's it that I'm gonna leave. That's fun, I guess. Better than nothing, right? So I put it to tell myself. So if I'm kind of feeling like it's all too hard and I don't have enough energy, I'll give myself kind of a minimum, like, okay, just do this. And often when you get there, you do more. Sometimes you don't, sometimes like that's enough, I'm out of here. But more often than not, if I've given myself a minimum, I will easily do one or two more things. Right, so you do a little bit more.
Fiona Kane:So the other thing to is that you might not be able to motivate yourself to do all of the things, but just just buy, agreeing with yourself and showing up for yourself to do some of the things or even one of the things. Funny enough, it's one of those things you get momentum and we get momentum and you do more of the things. So you know what? So you don't kind of say, alright, I'm gonna shop myself to do and I'm gonna do these hundred things on this list, right, because obviously that's too overwhelming and setting yourself up to fail before you even start saying how to do this hundred things. I have to go to the gym or and, by the way, doesn't have to be the gym, it can be Walking up and down the stairs, that can be just going for a walk to be set up to the chair, it can be whatever it needs to be for you to be going to the pool, walking in a pool, whatever right. So it's Does that have to be?
Fiona Kane:Jim, when I just show up for myself, in one way, I start to get momentum because I can't have to send a thing. It feels good, and it's two things. I feel good about it because it's healthy and I've probably just give myself some nutrients or give myself some rest or Charge up my body by moving. All had some water and so I'm gonna be hydrated, right. So partly the thing you do make you feel better because physically it makes changes that make you feel better, but partly the thing makes you feel better because you showed off yourself and you start to get momentum. Yeah, I showed off myself. Yeah, I mean, you can get to the gym and I get on here. Right, I'm here, I might be there with my two kilo weights, which is the ones I use two kilo ones is four kilo ones, right, yay me. That's all, man, I don't care, I don't care, I'm there, right, I am there. So it doesn't have to be perfect, doesn't have to be competing with the person next to you, just it's just showing up.
Fiona Kane:So how do you get motivated? Well, I think if you're waiting for the motivation bug to sort of just come and hit you sometimes we have these things happen, or the next thing or whatever it is, I bet all the way for someone else to do a for us or waiting for your friend to get motivated and invite you to go to the gym with them, because then when they get demotivated, you won't go anymore doesn't mean you can't go with your friend. But don't attach your motivation to someone else being motivated, because If you're attaching your health outcomes to someone else's health outcomes, as soon as they get demotivated and stop doing it, you stop doing it, so you can't attach it to somebody else's. What I said I would say that is like what happens is you don't usually just get this big motivation burst out of the sky and you don't normally just feel like it and you don't normally have energy to do it. So Essentially, you just make a choice, right. You make a choice to show up for yourself, and you make a choice to show up for yourself a little bit, then a little bit more, and then a little bit more than that and eventually you find you're showing up for yourself a lot in a lot of different ways, whether it's things around when you say yes and when you say no, and you know healthy boundaries whether it's sleeping, whether it's trying something new, whether it's gone to reading a book, listening to a book, listening to a podcast, turning up at the gym, whatever it might be, going for a walk around the block, cooking a new recipe.
Fiona Kane:You know, going shopping more often for healthy foods, right, all the different things we can do in our day to day lives to improve our health or maintain our health. They are all a whole bunch of little habits and they happen because we show up for ourselves. And finally, enough, when you show up for yourself and you do those things, those things that she physically make you feel better because of the nutrients and the water and the movement and all the things associated with All of the scientific reasons why they make you feel better, but they also make you feel better because you feel good about yourself because you showed up for yourself and they also give you momentum. They give you energy, they give you momentum, so it keeps going and it can get bigger and bigger, right? So, essentially, you don't get motivation, it doesn't just necessarily come out and I wear it, might, you might be lucky. What happens is you create motivation, right. You just show up and maybe you just agree to shop a little bit for yourself, just a little bit, and you know, if you're in a situation where you know you've got a really you know major health issue, or you may major mental health issue or something like that might be really small, but there might be just something that you agree on. Today what I'm going to do is make sure I drink an extra glass of water or a glass of water because maybe you're not drinking at all. Or today I'm going to walk for five minutes, or today I'm going to go and sit outside for five minutes to get a different perspective and turn off social media and a television or whatever. It is right.
Fiona Kane:So Listen to. You might not be to do anything, but listen to really a podcast or a book or something. Learn how to learn a new. You might learn a new recipe, I don't know. Whatever it is, there might be things that you can. You might be very limited in what you can do or could do my own things or anything in between.
Fiona Kane:Right, essentially, what is? It's choosing to do something, it's making a commitment to yourself and making it reasonable and make sense, based on where you're at and what's going on with your life, and just little promises to yourself, little things to do to show up for yourself. Right, that is how you do it, and the more you do it, the better. It helps improve your health, or at least improve, and you might not be able to fix your health problem per se. Some, obviously, a lot of things you can, but some things you can't. But you might learn how to manage it in a way where you feel better, or you feel better about yourself or you have less pain, or whatever it is. So it's not always about sort of curing everything. It's just about showing up for yourself and doing the best you can to have Life that feels good, like to be in a body and to be to inhabit your body. Enjoy being in your body and get to enjoy life right. I talk about exercises being a celebration of what your body can do and another punishment for you ate, right.
Fiona Kane:So, essentially, motivation, it doesn't usually just come shooting out of the sky. You have to create it and you essentially create it by showing up for yourself. And it's good if you have a reason why I've told you some of my reasons, why you might have different reasons, and that is perfectly fine. But, generally speaking, if we're going to make changes or do something, we normally need some sort of why and then we need to essentially just choose to show up for ourselves and choose, you know, just small things first. Just choose, give yourself little opportunities to show up for yourself, and then bigger opportunities and bigger opportunities, and what you find is all of this stuff. It kind of just it's. It's a bit like a snowball rolling down the hill or something where it gets bigger and bigger. Like this, it gains momentum, it gets bigger and gets more momentum and you find yourself doing more things to look after yourself and more things and feeling more motivated because you showed up in the first place.
Fiona Kane:So the best thing I can do is just tell you to or encourage you. Tell you, but encourage you just to show up for yourself, however small or big that looks like, and these things I do is build on themselves, but just show up for you. Initially it's kind of showing up is what motivates you. It's not the other way around. It's kind of weird. We think we think the motivation is going to happen and then we'll go and do it. But the motivation happens because we go and do it and we just routinely show up for ourselves in whatever the capacity is that you can do at the time. So anyway, I hope that is useful. I hope you've learned something there.
Fiona Kane:I'd love to hear your feedback as well about what showing up for yourself looks like or how you, how you find motivation, or maybe what your motivation is, what, why you tap, turn up at the gym or why you make sure you have a healthy breakfast or whatever it is that you're doing to look after your health. Anyway, thank you, and please like, subscribe, share and all of those things. I my little, my little podcast is growing and I see it's getting out to more and more people and if you do that, you'll help me get it out to even more. So if you've got any benefit out of this or any of the episodes, please do make an effort to subscribe, like share and share on social media and all of those things. It's really helpful for me to get the word out. Anyway, I'll leave it at that. I hope you have a great day and I'll talk to you next week. Thanks, bye.