A Wow or an Oww Brain

I became intrigued after reading a post from RockSolidNutritionandWellness about two types of people:

1. Those who balk at change/effort/new habits. They think “It’s too hard.” They have many excuses.

2. Those who accept and welcome change and effort even if it is hard. They practice and learn to love new healthy ideas. They tend to be like the Little Engine that Thought He Could. “I think I can, I think I can.” This was one of my favorite books when our children were growing up and then later with our grandchildren.

Basically, we tend to develop a dominant pattern that becomes our mindset. Goodness, I want to be the “Wow” Brain mindset. What about you?

The Peak Athlete

Today, I was curious to find more information about the “Wow Brain” and came across a reference to a man named Todd Herman at the peakathlete.com He works with Olympic athletes as well as top executives in helping them become better at what they do. He has written a book called The Peak Athlete.

Even though most of us probably aren’t Olympic athletes or top executives, the information he shared can help each of us on our journey to developing a mindset of health, fitness and long life.

Cells are Resistant to Change

Herman says that our cells absorb information they are receiving versus assessing it. They are configured to the last stimulus they have receive and therefore have a tendency is to want more of the same stimulus. If they have previously received cortisol (stress hormone), they want cortisol. They are resistant to change because it doesn’t seem normal and familiar to them. Is this why it is hard to relax the first two or so days of a vacation? Our cells are used to the stresses of life. Herman says many of us are addicted to stress. It takes a little while for our cells to reconfigure to new, positive hormones like dopamine, which we experience during relaxation.

The Vibration of Change

As we begin training our brain with a new skill or a new habit for the good, our cells vibrate as they reconfigure and receive the new stimulus. Guess what? This is registered in us as an emotional response and can trip us up if we aren’t aware of what is happening. This cellular vibration feels uncomfortable and we begin thinking, “This doesn’t feel right, It is too hard to do.”

Living the Learning

Last night I found out that one of our grandsons is on the edge of failure in 10th grade Chemistry. Our daughter called (texted) me and asked me if I can possibly work with him this week before the big test on Thursday. Of course, I am willing to help any of our grandchildren. However, I have never had one drop of Chemistry in my high school or college classes.

Because I have really worked at training my brain to be a “Wow” brain, my thoughts were……………”yes, I can learn how to help him with this.” This “wow” brain carried me through the first three chemistry tutorials on You Tube. Oops, then it became similar to learning Greek to me. It was confusing and hard; and my brain became uncomfortable and began telling me, “You can never learn enough to help anyone pass a test.” I chose to think the thoughts of my “wow” brain. ……”Yes, I can! Yes, I can!” “Even though I can’t understand it tonight, I will find another tutorial tomorrow and begin to understand.”

Four Treasures

Among other treasures found in the work of Todd Herman, four stand out:

1. Todd encourages us to make small goals (baby steps) to start with rather than overwhelm ourselves. An example would be: Because I know how valuable water is for my health and fitness, I choose to drink 32 oz. of pure water first thing each morning for one week. If we say, I will do this forever, it may be too big of a goal. Taken in baby steps, one step leads to the next and the next.

2. “Anything measured improves, anything measured and reported improves exponentially.” TH

3. Surround yourself with other “Wow” brainers.

4. Anticipate possible setbacks.

Mindset

As we are learning from previous study of the work of Dr. Caroline Leaf, we can change. We are wired to think thoughts good, pure and lovely. We can change and train our brain to be a “Wow Brain”. Victory for health, fitness and long life begin and end with our mindset. I would love to have your comments on this. On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being a Wow Brain), where are you right now?