Getting stuck in ruts is part of life. It happens to everyone. Knowing how to get out of ruts to move forward is a ninja trick of contented people. These mental ninjas understand the importance of mastering your mindset.

People tend to fall into one of two camps regarding their thought patterns. Do you hold on to thoughts and stew about them? Or do you let your thoughts go without ever really hearing them? A healthy mindset operates somewhere in the middle.

When you realize that your outlook and attitude have a profound effect on your life, your life changes. You realize you can be in control how you react to each and every event you encounter.

This mental awareness means that you recognize that your thoughts (and, by extension, your reactions) are a choice. You have the power to choose whether you stay stuck or move forward.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Purchasing via these links gives me a small commission at no cost to you. Please see my privacy policy for more information.

Why Mastering Your Mindset Matters

In my ten years of coaching women in fitness and healthy habit building, I can think of plenty of clients who continued to struggle despite my personalized workout and lifestyle plans.

I used to be so perplexed by this situation:

They called me. Then they paid for my services. Week after week, they showed up for our sessions. They did what I asked (so long as I was standing in front of them).

I knew I was giving good information. The workouts were tailored to their ability level. Lifestyle advice suited each individual client. I knew I knew my stuff!

So where was the disconnect?

Mindset.

These clients didn’t just need a workout plan– they needed a mindset makeover.

Building New Habits Requires Mastering Your Mindset

Have you ever decided that you’re going to start a new healthy habit? Maybe you decided to start exercising daily. Or perhaps you wanted to give up sugar. Or maybe you decided to do a 90-day cleanse that you were sure would be the beginning of a whole new you!

How did it go? For most people, their desire to change is out of alignment with the constraints of their lives that make change difficult. It’s not your fault! You simply had unrealistic aspirations (like pretty much everyone else)! Ultimately, physical wellness and mental wellness are closely related. And it is mindset that what gives you full buy-in to what you are doing.

Don’t feel ashamed if you feel like you need support in giving yourself a mindset makeover. One of the ways people who achieve their goals become successful is by asking for support. If you’re ready to finally CRUSH those physical goals you’ve held for yourself, support is available to help you in mastering your mindset.

Fixed Mindset vs. Growth Mindset

“Readiness to change” is psychology speak for whether or not someone is saying they want to change or they’re just pondering it or they’re really ready to take action. For so many of my clients, their mindset was not aligned with a readiness to change that was up for taking necessary action to sustain new healthy behaviors.

Carol Dwerk’s book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success examines the idea that how we think affects how we act. When we believe our skills and aspirations are limited, we exhibit a fixed mindset. On the other hand, when we believe that our brains and bodies are pliable, moldable entities, we have a growth mindset.

Having a growth mindset about building healthy habits is what allows you to try and try again. A growth mindset is what squashes the notion that you’re “too old” to try something new. Mastering your mindset is about keeping a growth mindset even when things are hard or habits are ingrained.

With clear evidence that women over 40 need muscle, even if you’ve never lifted weights before it is worth trying. If you think it’s too late to improve your eating habits so you feel better and are healthier, adopt a growth mindset! You can always change.

A healthy mindset is a true, deep intrinsic desire to build healthy habits and release ones that do not serve you. When you have a healthy mindset, you understand that change is painful, difficult, and non-linear.

Even more, a healthy growth mindset expects to fail. There is an understanding that things will not go perfectly. And that’s okay!

Without a growth mindset, the best coaching in the world will not deliver the physical results a client seeks. Mastering your mindset is that hard work you have to do yourself to be ready for how a coach can challenge you.

3 Steps to Mastering Your Mindset

1. What’s your WHY?

The first step in giving yourself a mindset makeover is to define clearly why you are undertaking this project. Whether it is starting off on a new fitness routine or just trying to get through a busy week without feeling frantic, state the positives of WHY you are mindfully approaching this task.

So many times we move through our lives out of routine. We don’t have a real connection to what we are doing; we’re just trying to get it all done.

By stating WHY we are doing something, we live more intentionally. This helps keep us focused on what we value. Energy and time are finite resource. Ensuring that your mindset is in the right place by stating your WHY before undertaking a project is essential to spend your resources wisely.

2. Acknowledge and Release Old Tapes

Like the cassette tape you played over and over again hundreds of times in middle school, so too play the messages in our minds. Often these messages are limiting and hold us back from being our best selves.

Unfortunately, these tapes of negative messages like to play loud and often. If we aren’t living intentionally, we allow these tapes to have the full broadcast rights in our minds. This mental messaging keeps us trapped in a fixed mindset.

Mastering your mindset means the next time you hear these tapes, push the pause button to acknowledge it. Take a deep breath. Exhale and blow away the old tape and it’s negative message. Finally, verbally (out loud!) restate your WHY. This will allow a positive message to take root in your mind and grow.

3. Show Yourself Grace

As women, we tend to be very hard on ourselves. We expect perfection. We are so often our own biggest competitor, and we hold ourselves to impossible standards. Mastering your mindset challenges you to recognize the flaws in yourself and see them as badges of your humanity.

(This is a good time to practice Step 2! Let’s banish the perfection tape forever!)

Progress is not linear. It does not particularly care about a timeline. So when you are moving through your project and you face a setback, show yourself some grace. I like to put one hand on my belly and one hand on my heart, close my eyes, and take three deep breaths. By attaching a physical act to the mental shift, I find this is a quick easy way to re-set myself.

A Mindset Makeover to a State of Grace

If you are facing a challenge you didn’t ask for—a divorce, the death of a parent, unsavory coworkers—showing yourself grace is essential. There is a growth opportunity in every situation, even when it is hard to see at first.

With a growth mindset focused on your WHY, regular deep breathing, and a little grace, you can see yourself through more contentedly.

Here’s to mastering your mindset so you can achieve the personal growth, health, and well-being you deserve!

The Well Balanced Women blog is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Please discuss your health issues with a licensed medical practitioner.