Vision Board

One of the tools I’ve used as an educator is the vision board as it helps people visualize what they are trying to achieve in a very concrete manner. I have found that putting things down on paper can really help us contextualize the why of our wellness journey. Using pictures to name our why helps give our goals meaning beyond just weight loss.

Dr. William Sears in his book, Prime Time Health, talks about making health your hobby. One way to get started with this type of mindset is to really uncover why it matters to us. Why are we spending so much time, money and effort trying to get healthy? This moves us away from one dimensional goal setting such as, I want to lose weight, which I talked about in my last blog. Rather it moves us toward a systems approach to wellness, I want to be healthy so I can enjoy playing with my children (or grandchildren) again. Using a vision board can really help us uncover and envision what our healthy life would look like. Keeping this in mind, I’d like to share an activity you can engage in to help you focus on living a healthier lifestyle. I completed this activity and found it helpful.

Begin looking through photographs found online, in magazines, newspapers or on old calendars. I found most of mine online in images. Find several photographs that you feel best represent what you’d like to be doing in your free time, ex., hiking, swimming, sailing; if you were able. It can be something you used to do when younger, or something you wish you could do if you were healthier. Paste the photographs into a word document, or a physical wellness journal. I went with the journal as I like to have a tangible book that I collect my thoughts in. You can also make a collage and paste them onto poster paper. Write down why you selected these photographs and what they represent to you. What theme emerges when looking at your photographs? Ex., I’d like to be moving and traveling. I’d like to run a marathon in all 50 states in the USA. I’d like to play outside with my children and grandchildren.

This activity, as simple as it is, really helps you understand why you want to achieve wellness. It gives purpose to your why and focuses you on what you will need to do now to be able to achieve your future life. You come to realize the importance of pouring into yourself now in order to obtain these future goals. It’s like talking to your future self and making a promise to do the work now so they can enjoy life better then, or making health your hobby.

The next part is to think of three things you can do now to help you get to the place where you will be able to do what is in your pictures. For me, I selected a photographs of prime time adults engaged in playing sports, with a specific focus on pickleball and hiking. One theme that emerged for me was that I want to be continue to be athletic and physically fit well into my 80s and beyond. To continue to be able to walk, run, hike and engage in sports. These activities bring me laughter, socialization and joy. They feed my competitive drive and are great for my overall mental wellness.

Many of you who know me, know I have not been good at taking care of my body. As a long distance runner, I ran well beyond my physical capabilities up until my 60th birthday. I sustained multiple stress fractures and torn tendons, and did not think to the future as I continued to push through each of these injuries, despite weight gain and loss of conditioning. Perhaps if I had engaged in a visioning activity such as this, I would have come to realize the importance of investing in my health and taking better care of my body for the future. Further, to see that if I continued on the path I was on, I may not be able to walk without pain in the future. When I partook in this activity, I expressed just that. I wrote, I know now that in order to be able to run and play sports long term, I have to take better care of my body. Three things I can do now are, eat healthier foods that nourish my body, return to Hatha yoga to stretch and maintain flexibility and learn to better listen to my body and rest when needed.

The themes that emerged for me after reflecting are that wellness and self care are an investment in myself for the future. Living in the moment and focusing on weight loss has never helped me think long term. While it helped me in the moment, it never was sustainable for me. Investing in my health for my future focuses me on sustainability and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I definitely do not want to be unable to walk outside every day. I definitely do want to play with my grandson and not be tired all the time. When I have weak moments, having this vision board can help reenergize and focus me on why I am doing this work. I hope you try the activity. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions, or comments. I’d love to hear what emerged for you and what your future self will be doing. Post your comments here or email me at laurakump@reclaiminghealth.blog .