In his era, “Babe” Ruth (George Herman), struck out 1330 times and became known as the “Strikeout King.”  Today “Babe” Ruth is considered one of the greatest players of all time holding the major league lifetime home run record for almost four decades.  He focused on his successes and learned from his failures.

Michael Jordan, a basketball champion extraordinaire, says he is not the player he is because of natural talent but because of all the hours and practice and ‘failed’ shots he made, well over 1,000!  Nobody watched that!

Behind every success are lots of practices, hard work, and numerous failures.  Behind every ‘winner’ is someone who has been a ‘loser’, many times over!  “Babe” Ruth, Michael Jordan and successful people worldwide do NOT focus on their failures (if they did, like most people they would have quit, given up).  They viewed their failures as merely learning tools to take another step forward toward their goal. They already saw themselves achieving their goal, it was just a matter of WHEN they would actually excel.  Through lots of hard work, determination, commitment, and most often ‘failures’ they reached a level of excellence and success we all see and remember today.

We too can achieve our own personal goals by emulating these athletes. I personally learned this lesson when HEALTH became my highest priority, my goal. If I was going to change my health around, I needed to do things differently. You’ve heard that definition of stupid: when you keep doing what you’ve been doing and expect different results.  I needed to get smart.  

I started changing my habits one step at a time (not easy, but doable).  I spent hours studying health, learning as much as I could through classes, lectures, books, and tapes.

I practiced success strategies (staying focused, visualization, positive talk, and meditation).  I made the time – not easy when you’ve got a ‘to do’ list that never gets ‘done’. 

I listed out as many reasons WHY achieving this goal was important to me.  Not only did this serve to motivate me, but it inspired me.  I read this list every morning.  I tried, not always successfully, to keep my thoughts, words and actions directed toward my goal.

I PRACTICED healthier:

Food selection:  choosing whole fresh plant foods (preferably organic) for their superior nutrient content and low calorie composition

Food Preparation:  preparing the popular dishes I like (very important – focus on the foods you like and eat most often) in a way that didn’t compromise its nutrient value – in its raw, natural, ‘uncooked’ state.

Learning to prepare food this way took time, LOTS of failure, but I kept plugging away while keeping focused on my goal and soon I was preparing dishes effortlessly, even enjoying myself!

Food Consumption:  I learned…..yes LEARNED…to chew my food thoroughly.  Our stomach does not have teeth. Did you know that most digestive enzymes are found in your mouth and that the more you chew, the more enzymes you initiate? There’s ‘motivation’ to chew! 

We’re a fast food nation, with a fast food mentality and we often overlook the most important part of food consumption: chewing. 

You’ve heard of the ‘big gulp’, well this also applies to our eating habits. We ‘super-size’ everything because we rush through the eating process.  Eating in big gulps we never thoroughly ‘taste’ the food or allow it to stay on our tongue long enough to ‘savor’ the flavor.  This leads to overeating and subsequent weight gain and stomach distress.

Keep your meals simple:  The simpler your meal, the more satisfying it is.  With every new ‘taste’ you introduce to your pallet when dining, you’ll be stimulated you to eat more.  If you sat down to eat bananas, as many as you wanted to feel comfortably full, it would take few to satisfy you.  If however you added granola, then raisins, then milk, then coffee to your meal…well, not only do you pack on more calories and feel inclined to eat more, but you’ve just initiated the ‘abundance’ principle.  The more you eat, the more you want to eat. 

I read somewhere that to achieve any goal you desire, you have one of two ways to go: there is the hard way, and then there is the harder way! Making changes require EFFORT.  The REWARDS however are worth every bit of it!  By developing better habits, making better choices, developing successful strategies, and practicing healthier activities, I exceeded my HEALTH goal in ways unimaginable. Honestly if I can do it, you most certainly can!

Set your goal(s)……..…embrace failures, as well as successes……..move forward one step at a time………..Be a Champion!

Just like “Babe” Ruth or Michael Jordan.

Bon A Petite

Beth Wilke, Raw Food Chef & Teacher