Situational Happiness and How It Affects Weight Loss
The Quick Cut:
Situational happiness can help you lead a balanced and happier life.
Always remember to give yourself permission to have fun.
Don't deprive yourself of social situations in order to meet your fitness and fat loss goals.
Try to view your decisions from a different light. Each situation calls for a particular decision.
You can always catch up. (ex. If you give yourself permission the night before, cut back on calories the next day).
Make happiness a priority.
The Long Slice:
What Is Situational Happiness?
Situational happiness is basically a way for you to think about the situation you're in and when you are faced with having to make a decision during that situation, you make one that’ll lead to happiness. You can take this mindset into different contexts of your life, such as fat loss or even social situations.
For example, I had a client of mine, let’s call him Mr. G.
Mr. G was very social, he participated in Saturday night activities regularly where he would get invited to get-togethers often involving plenty of food and drinks.
With the main foods, desserts, and alcohol flowing, Mr. G would often find it difficult to find a balance in these situations.
Mr. G’s position can be a common event in many of our lives as we try to achieve balance. Take it this way, you have this situation where you want to go out, have fun and bond with the people that you're with, but at the same time, you don’t want to let that situation derail you from your fitness and fat loss progress.
Then, there’s always the worry that if you choose to participate in this type of social event you might experience mixed emotions and guilt as a result of such actions.
So what can you do?
First things first, you have to realize that like Mr. G, fitness and fat loss is a journey and, at times, cannot be the most fun. But, at the same time, we have to seek opportunities to enjoy ourselves, have balance and live our lives.
So, it’s important to not deprive yourself too much from your social situations, such as a Saturday night out, instead, you need to adopt strategies like situational happiness to help you succeed.
What Will Make Me The Happiest?
When you're in a situation where you feel like you are being torn between making a decision or asking yourself “hey should I eat this thing?” The best thing to do is just trust your gut and ask yourself what is it that will make me the happiest? Forget about the fitness goals for that second and focus on that question.
For instance, will it make me the happiest having this drink, toasting this person and getting to relax? Or will having this drink make me feel bad and stressed out? Ask yourself these questions and weigh out your pros and cons. This practice can act as the filter you need to make a conscious decision.
The Line Of Happiness
By taking the time and asking yourself these questions, chances are your intuition and your conscious mind knows if you're doing the right thing or not. It is likely that something small, like having a drink or a piece of dessert, isn’t going to ruin your fitness efforts. But, if you allow yourself a chance to process your conscious thoughts you can utilize them as a safety valve for determining at what points you may feel bad and where in fact you can reach your happiness.
This idea is like a line of happiness. Where if you stay under it, you're going to be happy and maybe allow yourself to have that drink or that dessert. Staying under the line is when your consciousness lets you know that it's okay, knowing that you gave yourself permission.
On the other hand, if you go over that happiness line, you may begin to feel guilty or feel like you overdid it. If you are overconsuming, this behavior is only going to lead you to unhappiness and even stress because you're going to know instinctively that you overdid it and that you messed up. Whereas, if you had drawn a line in the sand at one drink or dessert you would have been happier as you stuck with a predetermined limit.
Ultimately, having balance and knowing your limits can lead you towards situational happiness. It is a matter of using a filter of what would make you happy at a particular moment. And this happiness is the upmost importance because happiness is what will help you to succeed in all areas of your life.
Always remember to enjoy the moment and keep your happiness at a priority and stay within that happiness limit.
View Your Decisions From A Different Life
Frame your decisions in a different light. Make a decision that will make you happy at that moment and the one that will make you proud of yourself.
For example, if you choose not to have something, you're going to be proud that you have the willpower and you can walk away knowing that you stuck to your word. That type of response is what is going to make you happy. Therefore, you achieved situational happiness. Whereas at another time and place, having that drink or dessert may make you happy; different situations call for different decisions, its a matter of finding your happiness in that given moment.
Well, that’s the gist of situational happiness. Next time you find yourself in a new situation, wondering if you should have something, try asking yourself one simple question- What will make me the happiest?
You may find that this approach can help you not only be happier and less stressed but be more successful in your fitness and fat loss goals because you’ll forget stressing over the small things.
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