By Lyndsey Hafer-Williams
Mar 7, 2020,
The work of swapping out destructive habits for healthy habits is not for the faint of heart.
The endeavor of remaining open instead of shutting down can be terrifying.
The task of striving to achieve an authentic life is neverending.
I call it Soul Work.
Working through all the layers of built-up feelings and then tearing down all the walls around your heart and soul, in order to discover who you are, can be one of the most difficult undertakings in life.
If you are trying your hardest to eat a healthy diet and move your body more, and it’s overwhelming or frustrating, you are not alone.
When transitioning to a plant based WOE (way of eating), it can be challenging to stay motivated if you’re not seeing overnight results like weight loss, extra energy, or glowing skin. Remember, this is a lifestyle change that can last a lifetime so it’s important to focus on your overall health instead of quick results (that never last very long).
That said, life has a way of throwing us curveballs and, in the wake of those curveballs, we might know what to do in order to take care of ourselves, but we can’t find the motivation to do it.
It seems like the word motivation has taken on a life of its own.
We are all waiting to feel it!
We are all waiting to be inspired by it!
We are all waiting for our fire to be lit by it!
From the outside, it might seem like people who are motivated to eat healthy and move their body on a consistent basis are in possession of some sort of hard-to-acquire-super-powered-mystical-unicorn-motivation that isn’t available to the general public.
The people who batch the meal plans every single week.
The people who stay on track with this WOE.
The people who have a daily movement practice.
I can only speak for myself, but it would be so much fun to tell you that I’ve finally found the magical-mother-lode of motivation and then tell you where to go find it so you can scoop it up and bring it home with you.
But the truth is much more important.
Before finding Clean Food Dirty Girl and completely transitioning to a Whole-Food Plant-Based way of eating, I struggled my entire life with depression, obesity, chronic health problems, and lack of self-worth. I had tried every diet imaginable and wasted tons of money and time on fad weight-loss schemes and gym memberships.
I continually searched for motivation to keep at it!
But the more I searched, the more I continued to feel uninspired and unmotivated.
The simple truth is this:
The desperate struggle to stay motivated became my complete focus.
Not the path to health and well-being.
Not the joy of exploration and adventure.
Not gratitude for the present moment
Not the journey at all.
I was only focused on the end result. At all costs to my body, my mind, my friends, my family, and my life. It was a constant struggle of hurry up and wait. And I was sick of it.
So I tried something else instead. I looked inward and focused on the journey.
For every picture that I post exclaiming …
how happy I am
how fabulous I feel
how easy it is to move my body
…there are hundreds of pictures not posted showing how hard I worked, how many tears were shed, how many times I didn’t want to batch or move and I did it anyway, and how many times failure greeted me but I got back up and kept going.
I’m just like you, no super-human powers at all. But, what I have done is turned inward.
And what I found is that everything you need is already inside of you.
When you shift your perspective, shift your mindset, and shift your attitude from that of “waiting” to one of “trusting” everything changes.
Trust the power of plant-based nutrition and the Plant Fueled Meal Plans that are thoughtfully created to support your journey to health.
Trust the process and trust yourself.
Because in the end, it’s all about transformation and that takes time. Results are the happy side effects of changing your life from the inside out.
Results will come. They must.
Don’t wait for motivation to find you. Don’t wait for inspiration. Don’t wait for outside encouragement.
Gather up your courage, take a deep breath, and jump in right now.
Are you currently waiting for motivation to arrive before you start something? We would love to hear about it in the comments below!
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 10 minutes (75 g)
- 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (235 ml)
- 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon ume plum vinegar
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh chives, divided (10 g)
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and left whole
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper (about 5 turns)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Soak the cashews in water and set aside.
- Place the non-dairy milk, lemon juice, and ume plum vinegar into your blender and gently swish the container to mix the ingredients.
- Drain and discard the water from the cashews. Place the cashews and half of the chives (2 tablespoons) into your blender, along with the garlic clove, dijon mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- Blend until super creamy and smooth. Transfer the dressing to a container and stir in the rest of the chives (2 tablespoons) and parsley. Store in the fridge.
Notes
Wishing you a happy week. May it be filled with taking action, especially when you’re not motivated.
Xo
Molly
12 Comments
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This recipe looks delicious. What part of green onion can be used for this recipe? Only green parts or mostly green parts ? Thanks
Hi Annu! We would recommend using the green parts of green onions for this recipe, but if some of the whites sneak in, it should still work fine. We hope you enjoy! 😀
Great, Thank You. Will try it tonight ?
Thank you for sharing your inward journey with us.
I also found myself searching for motivation to find I had to say fuck motivation, what I need is some Self Discipline to get shit taken care of.
I have found that is my most effective state of mind. Rather like being your own mom.
Hugs,
Donna Creamer
I made this recipe last week. OMFG, just the best recipe for a dressing or even as a dip
I didn’t have chives, used green onions and some cilantro instead of parsley. This recipe TOTALLY ROCKS!!! Well Done Team Dirty??
I’m so glad you liked it!
xo
Molly
What can I use to avoid the cashews? Would beans work?
Hi Janet – Beans could work. No need to soak them. Also, sunflower seeds (soak those) or hemp seeds (no need to soak) will also work. You could do a combo of beans and seeds, too. Here’s a link to our Substitution document to check out, too. I hope this helps. ~Karen
Thank you for continuing to post. Your blog is very inspirational for me. I haven’t started my plant based journey yet, but beautiful people like you help make it easy. Your website just speaks to me so much. Thank you!
Katlyn, we’re so glad our blog is resonating with you. We’re here for you every step of the way on your plant based journey. 🥑💖
What else can I use instead of this plum vinegar.
Red wine vinegar would be a good substitution.