Your 4 Walls - Living with Intention

While “intention” has become a bit of a buzzword of late – along with other favorites like wellness – the true meaning of the word can often get lost in translation. For Dwayne Bergmann, living with intention means actively applying, pursuing, encouraging, and calibrating his daily tasks and long terms goals to best align with his reason for setting them in the first place. Centering oneself on a purpose rather than the end result puts a whole new perspective on how to achieve them.

January is known as a time for new beginnings, a chance to wipe the slate clean and start the new year off on the “right foot”. We set resolutions like eat less and move more to lose weight by bathing suit season, but as popular as they are to set, resolutions are notorious for being broken. Instead, Dwayne suggests setting intentions that support long term results as opposed to quick fixes. If your intention is to get healthy and live longer, opt for a sustainable, achievable approach such as moving every day and mindful eating. Deprivation dieting and excessive exercise lead to one thing… burn out. Making healthy choices is a delicate balancing act that should be nurtured over the long run. The occasional treat should not lead to self-loathing if you are confident that your long-term intentions are being met.

Intentions are all about positive reinforcement and staying the course, whereas resolutions have a tendency to make us feel bad about ourselves when we inevitably break them. To change your habits, you must change your mindset. Instead of holding yourself to hard and fast metrics and deadlines, opt for personal ideals. To help yourself stay on track, write down your intentions for the life you want to live. While we are often inclined to set lofty goals and push ourselves to achieve them, sometimes it’s the small accomplishments that feel like big wins over the long run. The act of documenting can help to remind you of your reasons behind your actions and act as a compass to help guide your choices in the direction you want to go.

You may still be wondering, what’s the difference? Dwayne has outlined a few common resolutions and their intentional counterparts to display the distinction and help you rethink your approach.

Resolution: I’m going to be better at keeping in touch this year.
Reality: It’s the second week in January and I haven’t made one phone call to a friend or loved one. Maybe I’ll start in February.
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Intention: Being a good friend/support for others makes me happy.
Reality: I am pursuing my happiness by sending “thinking of you” notes to friends and loves ones when they cross my mind.

Resolution: I want to lose 10 lbs. by Valentine’s Day.
Reality: I ate salads for every meal and went extra hard at the gym 5 days this week. I’m treating myself to a huge pizza and 3, maybe 4 rest days.
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Intention: Increasing my mobility and eating whole foods gives me energy and confidence.
Reality: I take time for myself every morning, which includes a walk around my neighborhood. I’ve even reconnected with some neighbors! Starting my day off right helps me make better choices throughout the day, like opting for un-processed and organic foods and cutting down on excess sugar and simple carbs.

Resolution: I’m going to stick to Dry January this year.
Reality: There’s a coup in the Capitol, forget the glass just hand me the bottle.
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Intention: Drinking in moderation allows me to have fun while maintaining my long-term health and financial goals.
Reality: I’ll have the antioxidant mocktail, please!

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