The secret to optimal health
One simple act can have a profound effect on health and well being. However, simple does not mean easy. With only three words, it’s very easy to remember:
Act as if.
The mind processes data (conscious and subconscious) as helpful or harmful, marking painful (physically or mentally) experiments as potentially harmful. When data is received as potentially harmful, conscious decisions are affected by the subconscious data. In other words, people tend to act as if the original painful experience is reoccurring, even though it isn’t.
For example, someone who has recovered from a painful injury avoids exercises for fear of re-injury even if those exercises would strengthen and stabilize to prevent injury. They project their past experience (injury) into the future (fear of re-injury), bypassing the present and the many opportunities to create positive change.
Yet, when you act as if you are what you want, have what you want, feel what you want, the choices you make lasting change. If you were at optimal health at this very moment, what would be different? What choices would you make? What would stop?
The fear of “what if” often creates a subconscious barrier to stepping fully into acting as if you are the best version of yourself. What if people don’t accept you, what if you fail, what if it doesn’t work, what if you’re successful? These are fears that keep people stuck.
To begin acting as if, decide what optimal health looks and feels like for you. Consider optimal health in all areas of your life: mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, career, community, and relationships. If you were experiencing optimal health in each of those areas, what would be different?
The mind is a powerful tool with thoughts driving actions. When you choose to act as if, you make choices that support desired behavior. Those decisions often lead to more interesting and opportunistic outcomes. Experiment with it for a week and see what changes. You may find you choose to continue acting “as if” for much longer.
Wendy Reese Hartmann taps into inner wisdom and living a life of balance, strength and flexibility. She is a certified personal trainer and 500-hour registered yoga teacher with 25 years experience in health and wellness.