Judge a Book by Its Cover
“You gained weight”, he says – an honest observation.
I can see it myself – gut sticking out.
I feel it as well – my energy capacity seems to be less than the usual.
This explains why I didn’t put in extra hours at work this week – I just didn’t feel like it.
Not sure if it was due to the lack of sleep or if it’s the diet.
BUT I’ve been lifting weights to gradually get my body into its ideal state.
I see “gaining weight” as a physical proof that I’m straying away from the path of “self-discipline”.
We’re too quick to link gaining weight to overeating and unhealthy diet but it’s actually more than that.
Poor diet is not the only factor for obesity – it also involves sleep and physical training/activity.
Your physical appearance is actually a result of your daily habits.
If you don’t like it, then it perhaps it needs some upgrading.
If you do like it, then perhaps you need to do a good job of maintaining it.
What surprised me is that I didn’t really see any increase in my consumption or change in diet and yet I’m still gaining weight. Explain that.
However, I’m not a scientist or a subject expert so I try to get an answer based on my limited knowledge by asking myself these questions:
Could be because of lack of sleep?
OR lack in the consistency of sleep?
OR perhaps the lack of physical activity?
Or perhaps my diet needs an upgrade?
Doesn’t matter.
Bottom-line is that I’m failing to take care of myself.
And if I can’t take care of myself – how would I expect myself to take care of others? Especially the ones that are near and dear to me.
It all starts with self-responsibility – which I struggle with.
That’s what I’m reminded of this week from re-reading The 6 Pillars of Self-Esteem.
While the following statements are true…
It’s “what’s inside” that matters.
You’re putting too much pressure on yourself. Remember “You’re enough”.
This is ME.
..it often takes us further away from improving ourselves.
These phrases/quotes were intended to pull you away from the slavery of pleasing others – NOT to use it as excuses for our inaction.
I failed to see things that way until I found the following “controversial” and yet profound stuff that changed the way I see things:
Break Abused
I feel like I abused the idea of taking a break.
July was a busy month – so busy that it made it challenging for me to follow my ideal routine.
While I try to get back into it – others will tell you “it’s ok, it’s just the way it is” or they’ll say “let’s see if you can still do this when your baby comes out”.
Now I would love to accept those statements as it takes me away from doing any work.
But at the same time, I may regret it in the future.
One question that helps me get my shit together is:
Is my 60-yr old self going to get mad at me for doing this?
Often, I say “Screw him! I live in the moment muthafuckah!!”
And then another voice will say, “Yea yea yea, you’re right, I need to do this”.
Yup, I (mentally) conversate with myself–I’m a little kookoo like that LOL
Get Back Into It
Now that my PSN membership is expired – I’m no longer tempted to play videogames. Yup going cold turkey on this one.
Playing videogames to me is like sugar – it’s good if you consume responsibly but it’s bad when you get too much of it.
So now that my “videogame” hour is over – I can then replace that with writing, reading, or drawing.
I ended July by upgrading my personal finance to help me address future financial needs.
August will be the month where I need to get back into creating my personal brand through…
- MSPaint – currently working on a request
- Personal Development Blog – it feels good to know that whatever the hell I’m writing has influence over others.
- Insurance Broker License – yup, I’m going to create a new series for this. I would talk about my journey in the life insurance industry.
A Year Ago This Week
I…
- wanted to start over – which also aligns with what I wanna do this month.
- talked about eliminating the “Yes-Man”.
- E-commerce shop failed – so I did another experiment.
Seems like August is my month of “Personal Brand” where I try to write more and draw more to create an online presence.
[Read more about it here]
Goal Update
Personal Projects
I wanna use this long-weekend to set myself up to become more efficient at establishing healthier habits and other things that would help me get back into the path of achieving my goals.
I need to course-correct.
Health
I worked out 4x this week. Slow progress but it’s a good start.
Doing this more often will eventually create a better cycle for me.
A lot of people think I work out to lose weight – but it’s actually to help me get better sleep.
Because if I sleep better, I feel more energized the next day.
And if I have more energy then I can be more productive.
And if I’m more productive then I can reach my goals faster.
That’s the cycle I wanna create – it all starts with working out CONSISTENTLY.
Finance
Officially created an account with Questrade.
Increased my TFSA contribution to keep-up with inflation.
Not much to report on my personal finance which is why I need to get back into finding ways to sell my artwork or sell insurance.
Stay tuned.
P.S. here’s an article I wrote way back on personal finance – Ignorance is…NOT Bliss