Staying on the keto diet has been straight forward for me. I haven't had a "cheat" day or strayed from the basic foods I need to intake. I know I need to start exercising if I am to be "healthy".
My biggest challenge is my mind. Those thoughts that seem so solid and real. The lazy Dave. The insecure Dave. I am a bit confused as to how, on one hand, I can be very disciplined with food, water intake, alcohol, work, and yet so easily give in to the first thought that comes to my mind when related to exercise and other things that are good for me.
I use the image of Keanu Reaves in The Matrix when he confronts Agent Smith, as a reminder that I am a warrior fighting negativity and self doubt.
Neo's solid determination and belief in himself. He gets his ass kicked, brushes himself off, gets back up and gives the famous "come and get some" simple hand gesture.
Of course it took effort for Neo to train himself to get to that point.
We are all Neo. We are all warriors. We are all confronted by negative thoughts. Our mission is to destroy those negative thoughts by looking at them and seeing that, just like the matrix, those thoughts are not real. Our weapon is our own mind, like a powerful radar or a guard, watching out for the slightest detection of negativity. These thoughts have no substance or reality. You can't see, smell, touch, taste or hear a thought. Just because you think a particular thought does not make it real, or true.
Love is another powerful weapon in our arsenal. If you can't seem to have a single thought of loving yourself, thats ok, for now. It can take time to cultivate those feelings. Maybe you can start by thinking of someone you do love, or an animal. By thinking about that person or animal and their qualities and the love that is evoked, love it might begin to grow and spread hopefully to loving ourselves.
Sounds simple right? It's not of course. But we have no other choice but to look at ourselves, be honest and begin to figure out how to train ourselves to be warriors.
Regards, Dave (Level 1 warrior).
