Good morning, beautiful ladies :) Not post-savvy this morning- sorry if you got multiple emails on the post being made! hehe I am feeling tremendously better, full of energy, and fueled up w/ good eating and workout habits. I am pushing for BIG happy results this week :) It's amazing how healthy foods, workouts, and sleeping can boost your mood so much!
Today's post comes from Valerie- who pretty much rocks my world. Here's her post on the Marshmallow Study all about Self Mastery:
If you’re thinking about the marshmallow and how delicious it is, then you’re going to eat it,” Mischel says. “The key is to avoid thinking about it in the first place.”
"This is a link to a story in the New Yorker about kids who were given a marshmallow and told if they didn't eat it they could get a 2nd one after 15 minutes. The result was that most could not wait and those who could were good at everything else in life. No surprise. However, The kids who could wait and not eat the marshmallow were able to do so because they had a method to distract them from eating the marshmallow.
No one can just sit and stare at a marshmellow and not eat it. That is impossible. The way to avoid eating it is to sing a song, or pretend it is a cloud.
With simple training, a few lessons on metacognition (the science of thinking about how to think) children were able to dramatically improve their waiting time.
I used to run 50mile ultramarathons, my last race was over 2 years ago. I am trying to get back into shape to do a 30 mile race this spring, and the distance running is daunting. I have been thinking about the psychology of running great distances lately. As I remember it, the way I got myself to do those was to break up the distance, focus on the podcasts I would have on the IPOD, and other wise distract myself from the physical discomfort of the exercise.
When I am trying to lose weight this week, I am going to avoid eating junk food by not having it in the house, earmarking it for the kids' lunches, and distracting myself by focusing on the TV I get to watch every evening after my healthy dinner. It is comforting to know that it is not really just a matter of "will power" but also a matter of strategy and controlling ones environment."
So what do you guys think? What conclusions would you draw from the Marshmallow Study for your own weight loss and fitness goals?
So here's what I pulled from the study/article that applied to me the achievement of my goals:
ReplyDelete"low-delaying adults have a significantly higher body-mass index"
“We can’t control the world, but we can control how we think about it.”
"What, then, determined self-control? Mischel’s conclusion, based on hundreds of hours of observation, was that the crucial skill was the “strategic allocation of attention.” Instead of getting obsessed with the marshmallow—the “hot stimulus”—the patient children distracted themselves by covering their eyes, pretending to play hide-and-seek underneath the desk, or singing songs from “Sesame Street.”
"others were able to overcome their anxiety by distracting themselves"
“All I’ve done is given them some tips from their mental user manual,” Mischel says. “Once you realize that will power is just a matter of learning how to control your attention and thoughts, you can really begin to increase it.”
"high delayers were significantly better at the suppression task"
"high delayers are more successful at not pressing the button in response to a smiling face."
Ok, so what I get out of this for me is that to avoid eating unhealthy foods, keep your mind distracted. Personally, I know the busier I am the better I eat. It's that down time when I'm bored that causes many trips to the fridge :) I also liked Valerie's relation of this to working out- distract yourself from the difficulty of the task and before you know it- you've done it! That being said, I also strongly feel you should only do workouts that you LOVE (ones that distract you into getting in a good calorie burn without realizing it)and you should only eat foods that you LOVE (don't choke down foods that suck just because they're healthy) and that you should have a healthy balance in your daily life that includes quiet time, down time, and adequate sleep. So I guess everything taken in stride and moderation, right? ;)
I'm a rambler...sorry!
Thanks for sharing that study! I can totally picture you moms lining up marshmallows on the kitchen table in front of your kids, experimenting :) Hahahahaha!
I especially loved this study b/c I hate marshmallows! I don't have the slightest problem avoiding them! :)
ReplyDeleteSeriously, it's a great testament to rational thinking. I notice that the simple action of waiting can help me make a more rational decision. And, often if I make myself wait, I can get distracted during the waiting period and forget about whatever was tempting me in the first place. I use this on my kids all the time. For example, sometimes during snacktime, Ben or Em will complain that they want more food. After my explanation of a snack being just that and not a meal doesn't work, most times I'll tell them, "Drink a full glass of water and wait 15 min., if you are still hungry after that, you may have something else." Very rarely do they ever come back to me after the 15 min. wanting more food. They almost always forget about the whole thing.
So, I recommend that we all give ourselves a glass of water and wait 15 min. If we still want the marshmallow after that, then we probably should eat it and be done. Otherwise, we might end up eating the whole bag out of frustration!
Remember, the marshmallow in itself isn't bad. Just remember, everything in moderation like Sarah said. Good job Valerie!
Have a great week ladies!
Hey, everybody, check in KIM who just joined our group!!! Entered her bio in on the right side just now. Welcome, Kim! Can't wait to hear all your tips & share in your successes over the next 4 weeks!
ReplyDeleteWelcome, Kim. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this study, Valerie. It is good to relate ourselves to children--we think we're so much more sophisticated, but we have to admit that we also get impatient, excited, upset, distracted... Kids usually make their emotions plain to us; we think we're more complicated, but we're just better at disguising our thoughts.
I'll take this study one step further and say that to increase will-power/self-control, I won't just distract myself, I'll apply myself to productive endeavors. Yes, that's a hard statement. It's very hard to control our "wandering thoughts" and stay focused on our goals. Over the last several weeks, the phrase "Challenge your excuses!" comes into my mind when I come up against those mental roadblocks.
I have heard the Marshmallow thing before and it's true. If we want to reach a long term goal, we HAVE to stick with our short term goals. My short term goals happen day to day as I make choices all day long about what I'm going to eat, if I choose to work out, etc.
ReplyDeleteI'm not perfect at either one of those, but I do know that if I keep myself busy - or distracted - then I have much more success.
I have always been a bit more impulsive than is good for me... The marshmallow study really hit home with me. I am going to use the idea of a glass of water and waiting 15 min. This could help me with impulsive money spending too! Having to go get a glass of water before spending money may be just what I need ;)
ReplyDeleteI run across this study in a lot of my past psychology classes. I completely agree with Amy C. I have had to work to not spend money as well. My tactic is that I put it in my cart and when I am done going through the store I put everything that was impulse back. If I still need it the next time I go then I may allow myself to buy it.
ReplyDeleteI have hit the point of if I really want something I will allow myself a small part, if I still want more then I will walk away and distract myself. Then I tend to feel that I satiated my craving for it and I have it but I dont have too much.
Meghan, the glass of water idea sounds great! Good for you :) I like your comparison to kids, Sarah F., and your comparison to our short-term goals, Amy F.! So true! Amy C. & Shanda, that's such a smart idea for the shopping trips and putting back things at the end of the trip! That could work for us putting less-than-healthy options in our grocery carts, too :)
ReplyDelete