If you’re someone who is struggling with changing behaviors right now, my goal is to make your life a whole lot easier.
When we’re talking weight loss goals, strength goals, or anything in the realm of fitness what we are obviously trying to do is change behaviors. You have to become someone different to get somewhere you’ve never been. Behavior change is hard, but at the same time it is simple.
The biggest reason we run into problems when we try to change behaviors is that we try to do too much. Rather than managing and improving upon one variable we try to prefect six. This can be enticing because we all would love if progress just happened to us over night. But, that’s not how the world works.
You should start with something simple and manageable. If you want to get up early in the morning start by eliminating what causes you to go to bed so late. If you want to go to the gym start by putting on your gym clothes at the same time every day. If you want to eat better start by adding one cup of vegetables to all of your meals.
You may be thinking that there is no way you will be able to achieve your goals starting this small or going this slow, but the key to change is starting by one habit at a time and perfecting that habit.
Once you have established that habit it will be time to move on to another one. Before you know it, over the course of a year you will look like a completely new person to the old you.
This philosophy to behavior change isn’t as sexy as the idea that you should just be motivated and disciplined 24 hours a day, but it is more realistic. The truth is, our willpower is a limited resource. The real key to change is to start small and build from there.