
- Mantras can be powerful ways to focus on your goals when the going gets tough.
One of the tools I’ve relied on in my quest for health and peace is a mantra. Everyone, it seems, knows what a mantra is. My definition is that a mantra is a short phrase of focus that helps your mind and body get on the same track.
For instance, when I feel drawn to eat some tempting non-food, I have fallen back on the phase:
“I’m changing my life.”
At times, when I’ve felt been out-of-breath and weary on the trail and I start to want to turn back, I list some of my goals in a mantra-like way:
“Stronger, leaner, swifter.”
When I feel tormented by self-doubt (and dare I say, self-loathing), I find peace in repeating these words of Jesus:
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth give I unto you, let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (A text I set to music many years ago.)
If I will slow down and think on this for a minute, soon my feelings of anxiety and depression melt away.
The important thing, it seems clear, is to pick a mantra, or mantras, that deeply resonate with you and give you strength in times when you are week. Write your own, or look for words of wisdom from your spiritual guide, your favorite author, or even a favorite song.
The mantras I’ve used as examples are ones that came to me in the spur of the moment, when I was trying to get somewhere I wanted to go (stay true to healthy eating, keep going, find peace). But, there have been times when I wasn’t prepared to deal with temptation. Current research on overeating (The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite
), suggests that coming up with a plan of action for situations you know you will be tempted in can help you stay true to your goals. Planning a combination of mental and physical strategies for those situations can really make a difference, I know.
Before a family party (where I new I would be tempted), my wife and I discussed the issue and came up with a reward for only having one plate of party food (I usually tend to eat two or three). My reward may seem silly, a night out at the movies, but it helped me focus and became a sort of mantra for me. It helped me get through that evening.
So . . .
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Think ahead. What things tempt you away from your long-term goals?
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Search for or compose a mantra that will help you remain true to the real you.
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Use it. When the time comes, repeat it as many times as you need.
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Feel good. :-)