Thoughts are thing and very powerful thing that we all possess. With the thoughts we have, it can dictate our actions and habits. Information that we carry in our brain is byproduct of what we tell ourselves or somebody else in your environment every day. What is also interesting is what health and strength we have has strong relations to what belief we have for ourselves. We fulfill what we believe by behaving in the way in which we are expected by ourselves or by others, which is also known as self-fulfilling prophecies.
Self-fulfilling prophecy is sociological term and it is a process by which a person's expectation about someone can lead to that someone behaving in ways which confirm the expectations.
May sounds strange but we all follow this principle.
I grew up watching StarWars and when I was little, I grabbed a stick and act as if I was Jedi. In my mind, I was fighting against Darth Vader with a lightsaber. I wanted to wear all black since Luke Skywalker was wearing black in Return of the Jedi.
Just like that, belief can control who you are and how you want to present yourself in behavior, way you walk, way you talk and way you dress.
Programming Behavior
In behavioral psychology studies there was interesting study using a fish called Pike. Pike is vicious fish and has 600 razor sharp teeth. With this Pike, researchers place them in aquarium and fed them. Obviously, they took a strong bit to it and enjoyed their meal. After several trials, researchers place clear partitions between the fish and the food. With their habit, they charged at the food but hit the partitions and was not able to get a food. After several trials, researchers removed the clear partitions and fed the pike, but they did not charge at the food.
They were conditioned and learned that whenever they charge towards the food to eat, they got blocked by something and was not able to get the food. With several trials, they’ve systematized that they cannot get the food although they can see it.
Eventually, pike got weaker and weaker because it was programmed that it is impossible to get a food.
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Surrounds Us
This is same with us. We are conditioned somehow to believe in things that may not be true. For example, when someone is having a difficulty of losing weight or reducing body fat, they typically have difficulty of changing their habits. Most likely, with influence of family, friends, social media, etc., they have programmed their mind, which is dictating their habits to make the weight loss such a difficult thing. Therefore, they act in the way that they believe in and start eating food or drinking beverages that will do opposite of weight loss and reduce the frequency of physical activity believing that weight loss or fat loss is not possible.
Another common example is people who has been taking certain medication for long time and programmed that they are not able to get off from the medication. How much our medical technologies have advanced is so amazing since it is possible to have genetic make up that makes it difficult to regulate blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure and may require support from medication. However, this is a rare situation and number of U.S. populations who are taking at least 1 medication a day (69% according to CDC), are way more than to say just a genetic issues.
What may be happening is people are told that they have a chance of getting diseases because of their family history by their doctors, nutritionists, and more powerful influencer family. So, what do they do? After several times of programming by their environment, they are fulfilling what they were told and start acting in kind with a behaviors that will lead them to high blood pressure, high blood sugar, insulin resistance, high cholesterol, and even perhaps cancer.
When Does Programming Starts?
I have 2 kids, 1 girl, 1 boy. They both started reading a book around when they were 3,4 years old. My son learned to read earlier because he was able to learn from what his sister was doing.
We all know that reading help us gain more vocabulary and grammar so we can have better conversation and able to read more complicated documents in the future.
But isn’t it interesting that the kids, as they grow up, learn to speak before they read? Who taught them to speak? Nobody. They’ve watched and listened to what their parents (us) were doing. Both amazing and scary but this is where programming starts.
Initially, both of my kids were fluent in Japanese and spoke no English because me and my wife spoke only in Japanese. Since the school started, although me and my wife still speaks Japanese, however, 90% of words that come back to us are in English.
We are creature of habits, and those habits are programmed by our environment. Who you listen to and hang around with can influence who you currently are.
Reprogram Yourself to Be Healthier and Stronger
We can always reprogram and improve our habits. This is true with health and fitness. For a starter, we will need to reprogram our mind and start speaking and acting in the way that we want. Great examples with my clients.
78-year-old female, former attorney, client is booking exotic trips 2 years out knowing that she will be healthy and fit. So, what action does she take? Working out with me 3 times per week, adjusting her eating and activity habits.
32-year-old female client started off having a bad hip where she cannot walk on. Along with training I helped her to believe that she can get better and stronger. After 2 years, she is squatting more than her body weight with her butt to the ground and deadlifting over 1.5 times her body weight. Hip issues? No more.
72-year-old male, former Navy captain, client had knee, shoulder and lower back issues and was convinced that he will not be able to run and may need to limit physical activities. After 2 years of training, he is running and wake-boarding and teaching me how to wake-board.
I can keep on going but I think you got the point. We need to believe that what you want can happen before the results show. Even if there is a limitation, you need to know and believe that you can accomplish first. Then you will find the way to accomplish your goal with the limitations that you may have.
If you don't know what you want to accomplish in fitness, it is ok to get healthy and strong as you may find what goal you want to accomplish along the way. Some of my clients just come and train because they believe that they will get their healthier and stronger with me.
Remember, being on medication is not normal. You can born with certain issues but those are rare and majority of time people are looking for quick fix for those conditions that doesn't exist. There is a work in getting fitter, healthier and stronger but it can be done if you choose to do so. Mind is powerful tool that we all possess and it can build you or wreck you. It all depending on how you program or reprogram your mind.
Here are some questions for you. Is what you want important enough for you to reprogram your mind and body? What behavior will you have when you obtained what you want? How closer are you to your ideal behavior?
Kota Shimada
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