TRTC - What's in Your Checking Account?
The Road to Change:
Step 2: What’s in Your Checking Account
Data. Analytics. Statistics. The amount of money in your checking account. It’s all information. Businesses use it to assess the success or failure of a marketing campaign. Internet advertisers use it to track what you click so it can send you targeted advertisements. Scientists use it to develop new drugs. I use it to make sure I don’t overspend. The information we collect helps to drive future decisions based on objective reality; we need to know where we came from and how we got there to know where we need to go. Imagine making decisions based on what you think, or how you feel, or what you believe? Though they are your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs, they are subjective and open for interpretation. When you are trying to create behavior change, using objective data will always lead to better outcomes.
Data collection is key and relying on recall isn’t realistic or helpful. When you go to the doctor, they record your weight, blood pressure and lab values. When you do your workouts, we record weights, reps, and other pertinent details to help with updates. Keeping detailed written records provides a story of what was, how you got there and what could be. Logically, the next step On the Road to Change, is all about writing things down.
How to Implement: Journal to Collect Data
There are many benefits of daily journaling. Maud Purcell, psychotherapist and expert on journaling, concluded that “writing accesses your left hemisphere of the brain, which is analytical and rational. While your left brain is occupied, your right brain is free to do what it does best, create, intuit, and feel. In this way, writing removes mental blocks and allows us more brainpower to better understand ourselves and the world around us.”
If weight loss is one of your intentions, journaling will provide basic information for us to have intelligent conversations. The more information we have, the better we’re able to help. Below is our standard minimum requirements.
· Daily food logs: need to know what you’re eating so we know what’s working and what is not.
· Bi-monthly InBody tests: again, more objective data to compare to food journals.
· Weekly dress up: choose a pair of pants that are tight and try them on weekly.
What about a deeper dive into the past? What data from past experiences can help drive the future? Here are questions which will help you get started:
· How is your weight loss goal different this time?
· How will life be different if you lost the weight?
· What things are you looking forward to doing once you lose the weight?
· What things can’t you do now because of the weight?
· What problems will be solved by losing weight?
· What things worked for in the past? Why do you think you stopped doing those things?
· What things did not work for you in the past? What steps are you putting into place to avoid those pitfalls again?
· What are the potential roadblocks to your success? What got in the way before? How did you manage them? What will you do differently this time?
· How will your track your progress?
· Will your lifestyle have to change in order for you to lose weight?
· What support will you need to be successful?
· How will you know when you’ve lost enough weight? Is there a feeling? Is there a specific number?
· Why is THIS the right time to lose weight?
If you don’t have weight loss goals, you can still use a series of questions to help collect data. If you need help, please reach out and ask!
Your next step is to post at least TWO of your questions, along with their answers in the Marino’s Fitness app: 2021 Challenge Group.
P.S. If you’re reading The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy, did you know about the pdf worksheets to fill out while you’re reading? Check it out: http://www.envisionsuccessinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/The-Compound-Effect-Worksheets-Package.pdf.