Importance of Self-Efficacy in Improving One’s Physical Wellbeing

Importance of Self-Efficacy in Improving One’s Physical Wellbeing

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Importance of Self-Efficacy in Improving One’s Physical Wellbeing

A healthy person is not one devoid of illnesses rather an individual whose functionality is at its optimum physically, spiritually and psychologically. As such, an individual should not be complacent with his health status simply because he is currently free from disease. It is the onus of everyone to strive to maximize their bodily operations in order to utilize their lives fully to achieve set objectives. It follows that people wanting to improve their quality of life must cultivate better health promoting behaviors. The health profession is there to facilitate the wellbeing of an individual but it is up to the individual to make the choice to live healthy. During the course of change, one faces multiple impediments to his attempt at a new lease of life. Friends and peers should acknowledge this positive step and assist the individual accordingly. Citing my personal change process, it becomes evident that of all the factors that determine engagement in activities that improve one’s physical wellbeing is self-efficacy is the most critical.

In order to discipline the self to adhere to set guidelines of change, the belief of in one’s ability to achieve is crucial. The choice of concentrating on improving physical wellness was motivated by man’s inherent capacity to assess a tangible progress visually. This would convince critics, allies, and me that I am fully invested in making a positive lifestyle transformation. The body is the vessel upon which all other functions are achieved. When it is operating at its optimum capacity, its utility in all activities will increase manifold leading to enhanced quality of living (Ontario, Ministry of Health, and long term Care, 2015). The body is the implementer of abstract ideas and concepts from the mind. Similarly, the brain houses the mind. The body provides the platform upon which thoughts are actualized. An improvement in physical wellbeing corresponds to general improvement in health, as a strong body is able to delve deeper into spirituality and promotes emotional stability. Another determinant of the concentration on physical astuteness was the capability to condition one’s body to create favorable habits. A better functioning body not only increases the longevity of the individual life but also ensures that it is ailment free throughout course of its duration (Huber et al, 2011). Physical wellbeing gives a person confidence in social interactions owing to feeling of fitness working in tandem with the newfound capacity to pull of trendy outfits. When a person works out he/she releases pent up tension and negative emotions leaving them no stress to make their mood gloomy. It happens that persons with a culture of working out are very social and lighthearted.

A person with low self-efficacy constructs excuses that will affirm their inertia in making the positive life transformation. There is a tendency to assume that there are forces outside of one’s locus of control that are equally motivated to ensure you fail (Anderson-Bill, Winett, & Wojcik, 2011). However, most often the opposition is a just a formality that every person overcomes and it is not unique to an individual. A person may argue with the high cost of living healthy eating is the luxury of the rich concomitantly justifying their decision to eat junk food. Similarly, the rise in insecurity in the neighborhood may qualify as a reason to discontinue morning jogs. In reality these are situations that may be circumvented if the person is resolved enough as was my case. The morning jogs were shifted to a safer period of the day. Instead of completely doing away with the food available, checking one’s portions and an addition of a fruit to the meal proved effective (Huber et al, 2011). The absence of visible improvements of workout sessions may lower the individual’s belief in his commitment to succeed. Landmarks of progress should be established to urge on the person. The perceived barriers to change like the lack of time or desire to sustain the new activity start disappearing with the first step. Having had attempted the feat before and failed due to lack of commitment, I was driven to succeed subsequently avoid a repetition of my previous attempt. Furthermore, all these doubts were often cleared by my exposure to a neighbor who was reaping the benefits of his new lean frame.

During the course of this metamorphosis, there are sentiments both positive and negative that will either edify your chance at success or curtail it all together by affecting your self-belief. These feelings are often subjective and they may contrast with your progress in reality (Kozier et al, 1987). A positive sentiment of contentment may cause an individual to stagnate in his or her comfort zone. Secondly, overexcitement may cause the individual to become ambitious and depart from his schedule. For example, if he did twenty bench presses a day he may jump to a hundred and end up exhausting himself. Conversely, an increase in self-esteem augments the individual’s focus of achieving his set objectives. Negative affect such as regret may instill thoughts of doubt and resignation by implying that the goal is unachievable. This may caused by presumptions such as size is owed to my genes or it would be rude to stop eating foods engrained in my culture. It follows that an individual should aspire to manage his feelings due to their adverse impact.

My personal experience affirmed the importance of situational and interpersonal influences impact a person’s self-efficacy and subsequently his physical wellbeing. Interpersonal influences are comprised of friends, peers, and relatives. As they are your immediate environment, they hold a lot of influence in your achieving a health promoting behavior (Kozier et al, 1987). Social support helps you stay on track when in doubt. Peers often determine your eating habits as healthy cuisines are viewed as formal and junk foods fit for leisure. Situational factors such a public policy increasing food prices increased my consumption of the cheaper alternatives, fast foods. Correspondingly, the reduction in family meals due to my parent working overtime resulted in the same effect. In the preparation stage, I had anticipated the occurrence of interpersonal barriers but not the situational impediments. My research proposed that friendships that do not support your choice of action should be severed.

Discipline in implementing the plan increases the probability of success of forming a health promoting behavior due to an increase in self-efficacy. Augmented consistency in training coupled up with an increase in drive implies that a new health promoting behavior has been formed (Anderson-Bill, Winett, & Wojcik, 2011). I am consciously aware of events that may trigger my return to previous lifestyles. This justifies my claim of being in the fifth stage of the Transtheoretical model, maintenance. My journey aimed at improvement of physical well being has confirmed to my personal opinions that the individual has the biggest impact on his success and versatility is of essence as a plan is dynamic, adapting to situations. These realizations help me try to make my healthcare services more personalized in order to understand the influences on the patient’s life.

An individual should perpetually aspire to improve their health status. Commitment is the key to success. Despite the numerous influences, the greatest responsibility is on the individual. Physical wellbeing has a corresponding influence on all other spheres of a person’s life. A strong belief in a one’s capability of success often results in the same. The aforementioned study reveals that a study on the how to predict situational influences is necessary.

References

Anderson-Bill, E. S., Winett, R. A., & Wojcik, J. R. (2011). Social cognitive determinants of nutrition and physical activity among web-health users enrolling in an online intervention: the influence of social support, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and self-regulation. Journal of medical Internet research, 13(1).

Huber, M., Knottnerus, J. A., Green, L., van der Horst, H., Jadad, A. R., Kromhout, D., … & Smid, H. (2011). How should we define health? Bmj, 343, d4163.

Kozier, B., & Erb, G. (1987). Fundamentals of nursing: concepts and procedures. Menlo Park, Calif., Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. Print.

Ontario, Ministry of Health and long term Care. (2015). “Policy Guideline for Community Care Access Centre and Community Support Service Agency Collaborative Home and Community-Based Care Coordination.” http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/hpromo/tips1.aspx