Painless Punishment for Good Health Habits

Punishment is a poor method of motivation. But, it can help program us towards better living.

For instance:
• Touching a hot stove causes painful burns;
• Being “uncool” around peers, will get you ostracized;
• Showing up late, can get you fired;
• Rudeness can get you snubbed.

How many times have you asked a friend, “If you see me doing that again, _______ (shoot, punch, kick me, etc.) me.” You are asking for punishment to correct yourself. This is not to start liking pain, but rather steer you in the right direction. It is matching an undesirable action with a painful reaction. It is kind of like a child putting their tongue on frozen metal. They learn pretty fast not to do that again.

But, with most people, destructive habits, that ruin health are not punished until later. The alcohol, the cigarettes, drugs and the junk food as well as the lack of exercise, sunlight and sleep tend feel good at the time and then bring vengeful punishment much later.

So, what has this to do with getting a flat belly? If we use the principles of punishment correctly, we can train our minds to avoid unhealthy habits.

How to use punishment to improve your behavior:

1. Keep the punishments small
2. Make the punishments immediate
3. Be fairly consistent

Keeping punishments small is important in guiding your behavior. For instance, when you forget your exercise, pig out on junk food, stay up too late, miss an appointment, etc. your should accept or arrange your own small punishment. What most people do is hand out heavy sentences for minor misdeeds. The wrong punishment is to beat yourself up emotionally: “I’m a lazy slob.” “I’m nothing but a bone rack…fat pig…idiot…screw up…, etc.” You basically give yourself a life sentence for a misdemeanor.

Instead, you want to set up a system where small infractions will cause small punishments. You have to select small, immediate punishments like:
• Giving yourself push-ups
• Clean the toilet
• Wash the windows, car, etc.
• Telephone your in-laws

In real life application, if you eat a doughnut, you might walk around the parking lot, do push-ups or telephone those in-laws. Another method is to charge your self some money and give it away to a cause or someone else. This is similar to the use of a ‘cus box.’ That is a small box or container where the person must put a certain amount of money in the box whenever they curse or swear. (As the saying goes: “If you really have to same ‘em, here is the way that you have to pay ‘em.”) As strange as it sounds, it really does work. I once used this during a summer to curb my own use of sarcastic remarks. It took about two weeks and I stopped making the remarks. All for the cost of about $16.

If you decide that you did something wrong and that you will punish yourself later, then you will lose the re-programming value. You really have to respond to your infractions quickly. The longer the delay, the weaker the effect of the punishment. Think of it like poking your hand into a light socket. Getting an electric shock immediately, is far more impressive than receiving the shock a month later. Your mind will probably not make the connection.

The exception to this immediacy rule is taste aversion. If you are to eat something that makes you sick a day or two later, your brain will remember the taste of the offending food and you will tend to avoid that type of food in the future. Even if the food is safe, that one bad experience is enough for you brain to immediately attempt to protect itself. Some people have attempted to use this to quit certain vices like eating a dozen doughnuts or forcing a teen caught smoking to smoke a whole pack of cigarettes. I know that my first experience with smoking and chewing tobacco made me so sick on both occasions that I never took up either habit. Stay tuned for more psychological and fitness tips on improving your own health on the website: www.2ndwindbodyscience.com

Check out the Stomach Flattening Book:

www.amazon.com/Stomach-Flattening-Doug-Setter/dp/0973182520

Painless Punishment for Good Health Habits / Author: Doug

Occupation: Health and Fitness Consultant
Doug Setter holds a Bachelor’s of Human Ecology. He has served as a paratrooper and U.N. Peacekeeper, completed 5 full marathons, climbed Mt. Rainier and is the author of Stomach Flattening and One Less Victim. He instructs fitness, muscle-gain, weight-loss, “stomach flattening” and kick-boxing. He currently manages 2nd Wind Body Science at www.2ndwindbodyscience.com and can be reached at doug@2ndwindbodyscience.com
http://www.2ndwindbodyscience.com

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