A majority of us in this business strive to lead healthy lifestyles. It doesn’t matter if you’re a full-time coach or business owner in the fitness industry, there’s a good chance you take care of your body, mind, and spirit.
We dedicate hours every week toward working out, we make an effort to prioritize sleep, and a lot of us use meal plans or meal prep services to get the nutrients we need to thrive.
We know that changing habits takes time and is worth the investment. But sometimes, even with the best intentions, we don’t follow our own advice.
Times Have Changes
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past decade, you’ve probably encountered habit change strategies in our industry.
There are literally thousands of blog posts, articles, podcasts, and other forms of media openly discussing the importance of habit change. More specifically, habit change enthusiasts have shifted their focus to helping people work on one habit at a time instead of trying to change everything at once.
Gone are the days when you tell your clients to “eat less and move more” to achieve their results. Now, trainers and coaches advocate a more intentioned, systematic approach to working out, eating wholesome foods, and improving lifestyle habits.
It’s a great thing to see, but…
Do As I Say, Not As I Do.
As I mentioned earlier, I sometimes struggle to take my own advice.
I spent a good chunk of my college years studying behavior change and psychology. I learned the ins and outs of nutrition coaching and habit change from some of the best coaches in the world. Heck, I’m Precision Nutrition Level 2, meaning I spent a whole year studying with the PN team to become a better coach.
And there I was, helping hundreds of clients on how to create small habits while simultaneously not taking my own advice.
It wasn’t until I did more of a personal audit one day that I realized I had been chasing way more than one habit at a time. And the really tough part to swallow was that I was not making much progress toward any of these habits.
I would be great for a week and then jump to something else. I was always chasing and never sticking to one at a time.
This quote sums it up perfectly,
“We tend to overestimate what we can do in a day and underestimate what we can accomplish in a year.”
I think this hits the nail on the head for my situation. I felt I could change a couple of different habits in the short term as I did not want to wait. Looking back, if I had just taken each one slowly and by itself, I would have accomplished all my goals within a year.
Instead, I was stuck, not making progress anywhere at all.
It Was Time For a Change
I decided it was time for a change. I knew all the research, so I followed my advice and started super small.
The first thing that I worked on? Journaling for 10 minutes every morning. I know it’s not a nutrition or fitness-related habit, but my emotional health and well-being are directly connected to my physical one.
And do you know what happened??
It stuck. Journaling has now become part of my daily routine. And I feel better for it, mentally, emotionally, and physically. The best part? I used that momentum to start tackling other healthy habits I have wanted to form for quite some time.
Each one building on the next. And before I knew it, I had made way more progress in three months than I had combined in the last twelve months.
Why Does The “One Habit At A Time” Advice Work?
Habit change has been studied extensively for years, beyond a time when I was even alive. So, we have a pretty good understanding of how it works. But ultimately, most research points to two things we know for sure.
- Willpower is a finite resource.
- Multitasking doesn’t work.
First, let’s talk about willpower. What does willpower have to do with habit change? Quite a lot, actually.
When we attempt to adopt a new habit, we change how we conduct our daily routine. We are adding in new layers of choices to be made or trying to replace existing habits/choices with something else.
If we assume willpower is a finite resource, we deplete it as we use it, much like gas in your car.
So, if you end up trying to make too many new choices at once, it becomes significantly harder to maintain the energy and willingness to change; this is especially the case as the day progresses.
Think about it. How easy is it to pass up a warm cookie and choose cooked vegetables instead? While it may not ever be easy for some people, it will be much easier for those who have not used much willpower throughout the day.
Think of all the willpower it requires to walk by the candy dish at work and not take a piece over and over throughout the day.
John Tierney, who coauthored Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, said, “People with the best self-control aren’t the ones who use it all day long. They’re people who structure their lives, so they conserve it.”
“People with the best self-control aren’t the ones who use it all day long. They’re people who structure their lives, so they conserve it.”
Stick with one habit at a time, and watch your compliance and willpower rise.
Multitasking Doesn’t Work
Multitasking used to be all the rage. You were expected to be able to do it, and it was deemed productive.
We have since learned otherwise.
Multitasking, in fact, lowers your productivity, adds more stress to your life, and increases chaos in an already crazy world.
Each time you switch between tasks/projects, your brain also has to make that switch. This might not seem like a big deal, but it can cause your brain to run at as low as 20% of its capacity.
By clearing distractions and focusing on the task you are doing at the moment, your brain can be clear and functioning at an optimal level. Now, don’t you think that this will make you more productive over the course of a day than constantly switching between tasks?
Your brain works the same way when it comes to habit change. When we focus on changing too many things at once, our efficiency decreases, and we end up with zero change.
By directing 100% of our focus to one activity or change, we can learn to really dominate it and make it a sustainable part of our life. This is where real change happens. This is where lives are dramatically changed for the better.
Start Your Clients Out Small
All of us at Coach Catalyst highly encourage you to start talking and working with your clients on habit change. It is an enriching journey and something that will get you raving fans for life.
Take the approach I took and have them start with something very small. It doesn’t even have to be nutrition-based if you don’t want it to be.
Have them start by making their bed every morning or even flossing every morning. Yes, you will get some pushback on how that will help them reach their goals. Just ask them, “If you cannot take 45 seconds in the morning to do this simple task, what makes you think you are ready to take on < XYZ bigger, more complicated> task?”
You need to set them up for success and build momentum.
Knock out one easy habit and move on to bigger and better things.
Remember: We tend to overestimate what we can do in a day and underestimate what we can accomplish in a year.
Focus on today, and watch how successful you and your clients will be.
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Bio:
Brian has spent the last 12 years fine-tuning his skills as a coach and movement specialist to help people move and feel better than ever before. He has worked with and learned from some of the industry's most revered coaches and personal trainers, like Adam Bornstein, Tim Skwiat, and Justin Kavanaugh. He has held multiple certifications through Functional Range Conditioning (FRC), Precision Nutrition (Pn2), and ONNIT. In 2018, Brian founded Motive Training, a personal training organization that teaches clients how to move with purpose, ensuring they have a well-rounded, functional body. You can find Motive Training in Grand Rapids, MI, and Austin, TX.
Website: www.movewithpurpose.com