Project: Tip of the Day - Perceptions

Each day of the Project, the Recruits get a "Project: Tip of the Day" and "Project: Recipe of the Day" from me. Today, I thought I would share the tip with all the BTWG blog readers. I suppose this is more of a teaching or suggestion/observation than a tip, yet I hope it is beneficial to you.

Enjoy.

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Hello Project Recruits,

"There is no reality except that which we perceive. Change your attitude and your whole world changes." -- Johnny G., creator of the Spinning Program.

I read this quote years ago, when I was just a green horn in the body/mind/spirit fitness world and to this day it remains one of my favorites. At the time, it was a good reminder that how I perceive the world around me directly impacts my experience and relationship to the world around me. I began to consider my perceptions about a lot of things: my family, my relationships, my beliefs, my grudges, my "success", my "failures", my workouts, the food I put in my body and more. As a result, I recognized where many of my False Perceptions Appearing Real (FEAR) were coming from and how distorted many of my perceptions were. As I've already shared with you, "Awareness creates opportunity" and it was through this awareness that I was able to change my perceptions and find more joy in "my" world.

So how 'bout you? Ever consider your perceptions on a deeper level? If you perceive the Project as a burden, as a task master, as an ogre, or as a confining prison, then that is the experience you will have; not too pleasant. If you perceive your Project experience as empowering, exciting, adventurous, and transformative, then that is the experience you will have; much more pleasant.

At night, when you are packing your food for the next day and measuring things out, how do you feel about it; do you feel agitated or stressed? Why? How do you feel about your workouts; pressured or down right angry? Why? And how about that pesky assigned meditation session, what is your perception of that? Either way, it's you perception that is determining your experience.

Eating properly and taking care of your health, fitness, and well-being doesn't have to feel confining. When you chose not to eat a bucket of ice cream you are empowering your self. When you chose to eat fruit rather than cake, you don't have to feel deprived when you can feel empowered! What are you being deprived of - poison, cholesterol, trans fats, high fructose corn syrup, guilt, shame, ego reinforcement? You tell me... In my mind, caving to cravings, being addicted to crappy foods and poor lifestyle choices, now THAT is prison!

There was a popular saying when I was in boot camp, "pain is mandatory, suffering is optional". When we are seeking to make changes in our life, there is bound to be discomfort, ego-rebellion and a certain degree of pain involved. It is how we perceive this pain and how we respond to it that matters - do we suffer because of inconvenience and things that trigger our ego or cause discomfort, or do we just take it for what it is, roll with it, learn, embrace the lessons and keep on keepin' on?

Project: Recipe of the Day:
Check out Sherri D's blog for a recipe that sounds pretty "outta sight!"

In Peace,
Chris