Self Discipline Creates Freedom

Self discipline - not motivation! - will carry us through to our weight loss goals. There is an unexpected freedom that comes with improving our own self discipline, setting up systems and routines, and forming habits that will eventually make weight loss and a healthy lifestyle easier, and create freedom in areas we didn't think possible.

When you recognize that self discipline creates freedom, you can develop systems in your life that foster a more healthy lifestyle. This leads to more free time, less stress, and more freedom. Read on to find out how to increase your own self discipline and create freedom in your own life!

How do I stay motivated to lose weight? What can I do to keep the motivation going as strongly as it is on the first day of working on a new goal or starting a new diet?

The short answer is that you can't. Motivation will fluctuate through highs and lows, just like our moods, our energy, and so many other things.

We can't rely on motivation to carry us through to our weight loss or healthy lifestyle goals. That's where self discipline steps in.

I know self discipline can be hard. But it's SOOOO worth it. There is an unexpected freedom that comes with improving our own self discipline, setting up systems and routines and forming habits that will eventually make life much better, easier, and create freedom in areas we didn't think possible.

I know it's hard to be self disciplined. It's not something that comes naturally to anyone.

The good news is that it's possible to get BETTER at self discipline. It's not something we either have or don't have. Self discipline is something we can build and improve upon. If we can move past letting ourselves avoid things we don't "feel like" doing and become disciplined enough to live a healthy life, the result is actually MORE freedom.

Freedom from what?

Just fill in the blank. For me it was freedom from hating how I looked when I saw myself in the mirror. Freedom from negative self-talk. Freedom from not feeling and looking my best. Freedom from food addictions and cravings. Freedom from obsessing over my body. Freedom from dieting and exercising. The list goes on and on.

Once I had enough self-discipline to follow the plan and do Perfect Days consistently enough until they became habits, I can honestly say that I now have total body freedom.

How Self Discipline Creates Freedom

My perspective on discipline further shifted after becoming familiar with the concept “discipline equals freedom.” Jocko Willink, a former Navy SEAL, coined the phrase and my husband introduced
it to me. What it means is that you have to be disciplined in order to have freedom. Everyone wants freedom, right? Well you can only have it if you can be disciplined enough to get it. In his book Extreme Ownership, Jocko explains how being disciplined as a Navy SEAL allowed him to be more efficient, perform at higher levels, and create more time. (You can read more about this concept in an interview with Jocko Willink HERE)

Because of life’s pressures and demands, your health is one of the first things that gets set aside or put on the back burner. Unfortunately, when your health isn't a priority, many other areas in your life will suffer as well. After years of neglecting your health, you may wake up one day and be 30 or more pounds overweight, have aches and pains, and don’t feel as good as you once did. Now you’re on a downward spiral and it becomes a slippery slope that just keeps getting worse and worse.
So it is critical that you adapt the mindset that self discipline creates freedom and develop systems in your life that foster increased productivity. This leads to more free time, less stress, and more freedom.

Once you can get into the frame of mind that discipline is not necessarily a bad thing, you’ll be on the fast track towards success.

By setting up structure inside your life, making a plan, sticking to it, and following it, you will eventually have more time and freedom from all of those negative aspects that come from being overweight.

3 Steps to Self Discipline

Having now shed light on how helpful and important discipline is in losing weight, I hope that you’re excited about the structure you’ll have that will facilitate reaching your weight-loss goal!

Here is the three-step formula for self-discipline:

1. First, you must have a clearly defined goal. Example: I
   want to lose 20 pounds so that I can feel good about myself,
   have more energy, increase my self-confidence, and go to
   the pool with my kids without worrying about my body.
2. Next, you need to list out the actionable steps that, if taken,
   will achieve that goal. This might include things like meal planning and meal prep, drinking water, getting enough sleep, being physically active, and so on. (I’ve already done this for you with The
   Perfect Day, which is part of my 10 Pound Jumpstart Challenge.)
3. Lastly, do those steps consistently to see results and repeat
   every single day until the full goal is achieved.

That’s all self-discipline is, and doing the three steps above will result in you having greater self discipline and more freedom. It’s not a complex thing.

When weight loss is done correctly and done according to the way your body naturally functions, it is actually a very simple process.

Stop doing the things that hinder your weight loss and improve your health and start doing things that nourish it. Do those things every day, and you will to be at your goal weight in just a few weeks or months.

I love helping women learn how to get healthy and lose weight. If you find the tips on how Self Discipline Creates Freedom helpful, please feel free to share!