Tread Lightly...Those Are My Toes!

Lying can be a form of ego protection.  A defense mechanism.  We lie to ourselves because believing the lie is easier than making the change that would logically follow embracing the truth. 

Author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn put it like this:  "We do not err because truth is difficult to see.  It is visible at a glance.  We err because this is more comfortable."

I see this tendency to lie to ourselves particularly in the world of health and exercise.  With apologies to Jeff Foxworthy for the style, here is my list of health lies.

You Might Be Lying to Yourself If...

• You tell yourself you can eat that cheeseburger and fries because you're drinking a diet soda. 
• You think that taking the stairs in your building or parking a bit further from the office will substitute for working out. 
• You say that you can't work out because of that pain in your head, the cold you have, or the ache in your back.  You say that you will work out when you feel better.
• You decide that you're not really THAT overweight because you weigh less than some random stranger at the store appears to weigh.
• You consider yourself to be healthy overall but you still smoke.
• You think you are a safe driver but you don't wear your seatbelt or you speed regularly

Did you see yourself in that list anywhere?  I know I did.  In the coming days, we'll take a look at each of these lies, uncover the ugly truth beneath them and discover ways to make the changes you need to make in ways that you can live with.