Preparation

1 : the action or process of making something ready for use or service or of getting ready for some occasion, test, or duty
2 : a state of being prepared : READINESS
3 : a preparatory act or measure
4 : something that is prepared; specifically : a medicinal substance made ready for use   <a preparation for colds>

That is what I want to do, that is what I am trying to do, get prepared, BE prepared, for New Years Day. It is my aim, my quest before the quest.

Preparation is the third step of 5 in the process of the stages of change, as illuminated in the book Changing for Good, something I highly recommend be on your reading list this season. Preparation is the last step taken before "action", that all important step necessary to actually do something about your negative habit.

I often get stuck in "preparation", making plan after plan. As I have learned from the book, this is simply trying to avoid taking action, constantly preparing tricks you into thinking that you are taking action, or at least doing something about it. You would think that after 20+ years, I would not need any more prep time! But as it turns out, I do, it just has to be a bit more focused on the task at hand.

To quote from the authors of the book; "...much of the work of preparation looks like a rehearsal for action."

This is actually hard work, and it can be boring. Many of us just want to get it over with, this is called premature action. As soon as we find a new pill, or gym, or machine, we jump in and try to get it done. Most of the time we fizzle out after a week or two. We are simply not willing to do the work necessary... to actually do the work. We do not want to look at the big picture, the long haul, the life changes. We are not interested in small gains, and the irony is...we gain more. I am guilty of this very thing.

How many of us set the date, be it any given Monday, or first of the Month, or birthday or, yes, New Years, and jump into the battle of weight loss with both feet. Always with the best of intentions..always. And how many of us also don't make it past 4 weeks, or 6 months, or two years. 95% of us.

Weight loss is a challenge for sure, but it needs to be looked at as a self improvement project with long term goals. If you wanted to build a house that was going to last for generations, you would not just go buy an arm load of 2 x 4's, a hammer and some nails and just start building would you? You would need some land, a blueprint, adequate materials, a good foundation, the ability to make changes, and above all...some help.

There are just 50 days until the New Year, a year in which I plan on making steady, positive progress towards improving my health. There is still time enough to get prepared!

Comments

[Denise]

We seem to be so in sync lately - it's spooky. I'm more and more convinced every day that the success or lack thereof that we have in losing weight/getting healthy can be traced right back to our willingness to dig around and create a solid foundation before we take action. Even with all of the ups and downs I've had lately, nothing's shaken my certainty that I'm on the right path and that this makes sense.

[Margaret]

It isn't so much the action as it is the continuing dedication to such action, so that it becomes routine.(thus a way of life instead of a temporary change in one's pattern)