I am constantly battling with myself with thoughts such as this:

"I should go do some yoga." *Just sit there and take no action...

"I really should...I know it is beneficial and good for me." *Continue to sit there and do nothing...

"It helps me be in better physical and mental shape...something that is very important to me." *A few minutes pass and I get up to get a snack

When I do this I get very frustrated with myself and then I start the negative self-talk and it ends up in a spiral of non-action, negativity. This is a frequent happening with many activities that I know are beneficial for me. Running, drinking water, even things as simple as flossing. My hardest realization has been that I, only me, have to be accountable for the changes I want to make, and I am the one who can have the discipline to take the action. I actually have to do stuff to be the best I want to be. I have to stop thinking and hesitating... I have to act, which is a pretty large behavioral change from the previous 30 years.

I am finally making some progress on this, but it is an extremely frustrating, slow, and challenging process. I want it to be easy like it is on tv and in the movies; I want instant results. But that is not how it works. I have come to realize that this will be a life long process of healing and growth. I have to change my mindset and not think of it as a challenge but as part of my daily life. I have to be accountable for me and I have to be accountable for doing the things that are important to me every single day. To accomplish this, I know I need to stop thinking and take action. As soon as I have the thought, "I should go do yoga" I get up and get on my mat. As soon as I say, "I want to go run" I get up, put on my shoes and go outside. Making this a habit has been challenging, but I find the more I do it the better I get at it. That is why I love Mel Robbins “The 5 Second Rule” (click here for her awesome TED talk), she talks about only having five seconds to react to a thought for an action to be taken. If you think about for more than five seconds, it is unlikely that any action will be taken. 

Therefore, my new mantra is “Just Act”. There is no time for doubt or changing my mind once I am in motion. Once I am doing the activity I had been thinking about doing, I realize how much I enjoy doing it and how much I gain from doing it. So I encourage you to stop thinking and as soon as you feel like doing something you know is good for you, don’t give yourself the opportunity to second guess, just take the action! The results are worth it. Every time an action is taken, change is in the making.