Don't "Banish" Your Inner Brat, Recruit Her/Him!

In my journey to optimal health I found a very VERY powerful and influential ally. 

My "inner brat".

Affectionately, I call her "Bratty" and I do so in love.  Because you see, I'm not afraid of her, nor do I reference her with any shame.  I'm proud of her.

Why you ask?

I mean, really, isn't SHE the source of all my impulsive off-plan eating decisions?  Isn't SHE the voice who tells me "come on, one little bite won't matter, you can always start over over tomorrow", and isn't SHE the one who invites skepticism in the plan even when and ESPECIALLY when I'm rockin' and rollin' and doing really really well?  Isn't SHE the one who sneaks in when I've had a perfectly ON PLAN day and blindsides me with a sucker punch just when I've almost made it to bed?

No.

She isn't.

Not anymore, and I'll tell you why.

Because I recruited her.

Many of us prefer to attempt to lock our inner brat in a closet AFTER duct-taping her mouth closed and putting her in a little white jacket with no arms.  But you know what I found, when I indeed attempted that?

She'd pull a Houdini on me and appear out of NOWHERE and before I could even ask how in the Sam Blazes she got out she was already working her devious plans to sabotage me and my efforts.

SO.  I got this WILD idea.  I know my inner brat is strong.  I know she is cunning.  I know she usually gets what she wants.

I harnessed her strengths and thereby MINIMIZED her negative impact on my journey.

I know what you are asking, "HOW HOW HOW HOW!!!!!"  I know you are thinking "Man, if I could do that I'd be SET!"

And you would.

I'm not saying it is easy and I'm not saying it is a walk in the park and I'm not saying it is the same procedure for everyone.  First step, though, is that you CAN'T ignore her or put her in a corner.  You need to get to KNOW her.  LEARN what she likes.  Find out what she's after.  Find out what drives her.  Because in this knowledge lies your blueprint on how to absolutely bring her over from the "dark side" to YOUR side.

OK so how did I do it SPECIFICALLY?  I'm being brutally honest here, and I'll tell you that my inner brat likes shiny things.  Super shiny things.  Sparkly things.  Beautiful things.  Yes, she does.  SO, all I had to do is find something that she wanted MORE than she wanted the off-plan foods and off-plan behaviors.

For me, this involved shine.  A whole lot of shine.  When I dropped below 200 pounds (I started at 272) I bought myself a Sterling Silver Tiffany Charm Bracelet with a single charm on it.  I wore it.  Alot.

And I told my inner brat that for every 10 pounds WE lost (my inner brat responds to numbers, by the way, which I don't AGREE with, I'm all for attaining and maintaining optimal health but on this my inner brat and I disagree occasionally), for every 10 pounds, we would purchase another Tiffany Charm to go on our beautiful and SHINY (did I mention shiny?) Tiffany Charm Bracelet.

She responded favorable to that notion.  Any time she would be distracted by a shiny piece of cake or shiny glass of red wine (oh how that red wine sparkles in the glass in the sunlight....I digress) she would be DRAWN to the shine UNTIL I got out my charm bracelet and dangled in in front of her.

Soon enough she would take her focus OFF of the off-plan items of food or drink and she would put her focus ON the NEXT CHARM.  Oh yes, I'd browse the catalog online and pick out my NEXT CHARM every 10 pounds.  In this way she had a distraction.  She was busy picking out the NEXT CHARM.  She was too busy looking BEYOND the sparkly wine to even NOTICE the sparkly wine anymore.  She was looking at the CHARM.  She even began to whisper to me things like "Oh come on, you, put that corkscrew away, silly silly girl WE WANT THE CHARM!"  Yes, I'm sure she said that.  I'm sure it was NOT audible, lest you think I talk to MYSELF ha ha I would never do that...heh heh..heh..

OK yes I do occasionally talk to myself, er, her, uh, I guess it's the same thing.

The point of this story is that if you STOP ignoring her and find out what she truly wants MORE than the "yummy off plan food", if you treat her with respect and kindness, remember SHE IS A PART OF YOU, then you can bring her on board with your health goals.

In a way, my Paris trip is testament to this power.  You see, my inner brat also loves to travel.  She also has always wanted to see Paris.  In this way I have kept her ON TASK through my transition and maintenance, I have kept her ON TASK and aiding me through my long runs and even my 27.3 miler last week (yes, I ran a "trial run" marathon in anticipation of running my ACTUAL marathon).   I have grown to love her, and I stopped shaming her YEARS ago.  She is me, I am her, and I'm not about to put part of me in a corner out of shame. 

I hope this made some practical sense.  It made sense to me!  =)

I am a Free Certified Health Coach and would love to assist you on your journey to optimal health!  Please contact me at stacymichellephillips@gmail.com and let's get going on YOUR health!

Rinse and Repeat!