Getting Uncomfortable Week 1

“Your mind can play tricks on you.”  Yes, it can. I decided to take advantage of this adage and play some of my own tricks.  

Last week I said I wanted to get uncomfortable on purpose, so I made it my mission for a whole week to look at every day as a challenge to get uncomfortable.

My brain: I don’t want to go outside because it’s too cold.

My response: Must find a reason to go outside.

My brain: I don’t want to go to the gym because (insert any of the millions of excuses I’ve curated over decades)

My response: Go to the gym.

My brain: I don’t want to stop eating junk food.

My response: Once or twice, don’t grab the thing you want to eat. 

I mean, goals need to be reasonable. After all, it is Little Debbie Valentines Cake time. 

My brain: I don’t want to put pants on with a button.

My response: Let’s wear “real” pants every day.

My brain: I’m dreading sending those emails.

My response: Start the day by sending those emails.

It was like opposite week.  Every time my brain served me something I didn’t want to do, I decided to look it in the face and do it.  Challenge accepted!

Some crazy things happened.  I realized toward the end of the week I had somehow managed to make it to the gym three times and go to yoga for a fourth workout.  I wasn’t trying to work out four times this week; honestly, I don’t remember the last time that happened.   If I would have had that goal hanging over my head, I would have been dreading it; it would have seemed like a big stretch, and chances are very good I would not have met it.  I was just trying to do something uncomfortable every day on purpose, and the gym was an obvious way to make that happen.

None of my gym visits were infomercial-worthy sweat festivals, but it doesn’t take long to feel like you’ve checked the “uncomfortable” box. James Clear says in Atomic Habits it’s quantity, not quality, that forms a habit, and I definitely checked the quantity box.

I noticed something else midweek, only a few days into my experiment.  I was feeling stronger - mentally, physically, emotionally. I am honestly amazed how little effort it took to increase my energy and motivation.  Just by standing up to what I didn’t want to do, my whole perspective started to change.  Each time I did something I needed to do but would have rather not, I felt a little taller, more ready to take on the next thing.  

With all the midweek energy and motivation, I read a fascinating book by Steven Johnson called The Ghost Map. It’s a book about a lot of things, but mainly it tells the true story of how Dr. John Snow (not the “love doctor” from Game of Thrones) figured out cholera was killing people in late-1800s London because people were drinking water contaminated with sick people’s waste.  Before this, it was unknown that cholera was transferred through water (I’ll be honest.  I didn’t really know what cholera was until I read this book). 

What does this have to do with my uncomfortable journey?  Well, to get to the conclusion of the book, I had to read a lot about death, disease, human waste, and the scientific progress surrounding disposal of it.  Uncomfortable.  I’m sparing you the worst parts.

If I hadn’t squeamishly read through some of the “dirty truth” I wouldn’t have learned so much about so many interesting things. Things had to get awfully stinky back then to make these life-saving discoveries, and we owe a lot of gratitude to those who got uncomfortable so we could live in much more comfortable and healthy way.

Doing all those productive things snowballed on each other to make for a pretty good week. So, what’s next?

Now that I’ve reduced my intake of nostalgic Valentine’s Day snacks, upped my exercise, read a “dirty” book, supervised a sixth grade lack-of-sleepover, and started digging out of my emails, I’m looking forward to finding new ways to get uncomfortable on purpose this next week.  It feels like I’m on to something.

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