What is the harm? We allow them to influence our behavior and they restrict us from doing things and often they stop us from realizing our full potential. We often use them as excuses and begin a sentence “I can’t……………………….because it is in my genes.”
In writing this post I had an epiphany about a meme that I had been wrestling with some time ago. On April 30th 2009 I had an accident resulting in a significant injury. I had been berating myself and beating myself up trying to figure out just what bad thing I have done to deserve this "bad karma." Who had I crossed? Was I not generous enough or kind enough? You know the old adage "what goes around comes around."
An accident is a fortuituous event. Sometimes SH-T happens to put it bluntly. Whether I am Mother Teresa, a small innocent child, or a nasty serial killer - it does not matter. An accident is just something that happens in a nano second, maybe from a momentary lapse in judgment by self or others or a freak of nature. We do all we can to prevent the inevitable - we wear seat belts and helmets, we have rules and regulations to protect us - we have a weather watch - all signs that we need protection. There are lots of hazards. I know people who behave a lot worse than I and they have not had an accident so my meme is very flawed. My analysis of my meme is that accidents happen to all types of people. It is not punishment for somethimg I have done.
Suddenly that makes it a lot better. Trying to correct some flaw, particularly when I am not sure which one it is, is mind boggling and not conducive to recovery. Frankly worrying about getting hit by a bus if I yell at someone would make me neurotic. Point is, I learned this karma stuff from people I chummed with in my earlier years. So I adopted it and it became my meme.
Why is acknowledging and dealing with our memes important to achieving health and fitness? Because these beliefs, those without any foundation, (memes) we use as excuses to fail or worse still, to not even try.
Some common examples:
- My parents and grandparents died of heart disease before age 65. Early death is in my genes.
- Everyone in my family is big. We are big boned. Slim people are the unhealthy ones.
- People are meant to look old after 50.
- My mother and her mother smoked all their life and they did not get cancer.
- Drinking , smoking and eating whatever I want is how I grew up. I can’t change it now.
- There is nothing you can do to change how you are. You are born that way.
- I have always been difficult and I can’t change.
- People like us don't go to medical school. It is only for the rich.
- Cellulite is genetic.
- Being forgetful is a natural part of aging.
- Eat everything that is put in front of you ---there are people starving in the world
(so my eating everything helps them how?................)
You get the idea.
How to deal with memes?
Acknowledge them, analyze them, overcome them.
What are the memes keeping you from getting fit?
My memes or beliefs for fitness were that I was too far gone and I was too old - there was no way I could get fit and healthy at my age. This worked against me making any progress with my health until I hired the right person to turn my beliefs upside down.
So keep the ones that do no harm or help you. You may have “inherited “ some fun ones or harmless ones such as how to dress, for example not wearing white after labour day and other cultural norms:)
For the more harmful ones that keep you from achieving your potential, acknowledge them, recognize they have no foundation in truth and that you have simply adopted them to use as excuses to stay the same.
This applies to getting fit as well.
So your MEMES are the barriers to getting fit NOT YOUR GENES.
Create a new cultural belief for your decendants - you are given a precious instrument to carry you through life. Take good care of it!
Now let's get fit and healthy!
Note: see the prior post 'weight of the world' to see some societal solutions to changing memes.
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