You’re too ambitious
When it comes to making positive lifestyle changes, it’s very common to feel like you have to go all in, especially with the start of a new year. You decide to improve your diet dramatically, cook at home, sleep for at least 8 hours every night, and add regular strength training to your cycling. These are all excellent choices, but chances are you’re asking too much of yourself and setting yourself up to fail. This is a big reason why so many New Year’s resolutions fail before the first month of the year is over. The worst part is that you may feel like sustainable change is not possible and not worth trying again.
How can you overcome this? First, it’s important to understand that it’s normal to overestimate how many changes we can handle. Most people think they will have more time, energy, willpower, and motivation in the future than they do now. Plus, it feels good to plan all that positive change that the future self will have to deal with. To do it right, it’s much better to plan conservatively and choose goals you’re very confident you can achieve. And when you crush them, consider adding stretch goals. Experiencing success is going to make you more likely to try and improve in the future and it’s a great way to get from knowing to doing.
You’re looking for the magic pill
It might seem like everyone should be healthy and fit if all it takes is eating healthy, sleeping enough, and exercising regularly. Everyone knows these things, but most people aren’t fit or healthy. So, some people conclude that there must be some trick, some secret, high-tech equipment or supplement you need to achieve your goals. It’s a very tempting way of thinking because then you can constantly chase the latest trends and try new things, which feels very productive and engaging. Unfortunately, as we showed in the previous article, only a few per cent of people actually make all of those basic lifestyle choices into habits. That’s the reality and the reason why so many people are struggling.
What can you do about it? If you notice yourself being drawn to the shiny new gadget or supplement with the hope that it will solve everything, ask yourself this question: “How consistent have I been with the basics in the past few months?” If the answer is not very consistent or consistent in exercise but not so much with sleep and diet, then you know where to spend your time and energy. Doing the basics consistently is the only magic pill.
You’re distracted by going for perfection
Seeing our cycling heroes and fitness influencers, it becomes second nature to think that everyone should aim for perfection. If you want high-level performance on the bike, you need to train at a high level. Similarly, if you want great health, you need to execute your healthy habits perfectly. This can feel overwhelming and it could prevent you from even trying.
But there are two problems with that. One, there is no such thing as perfect health. Even elite athletes get sick sometimes. Perfect health is an illusion you can only see in other people, those you don’t know that much about. And second, you can be far from perfection and still do more for your health than most. Yes, just by consistently doing the following 5 basic healthy habits, you’re in the top 6% of all people according to research:
- Exercise for 150 minutes a week
- Don’t smoke
- Moderate or avoid alcohol consumption
- Get at least 7 hours of sleep per night
- Eat a diet that allows you to maintain a healthy weight
Sure, it’s not easy to do all of these long term, but it’s much more realistic than trying to meditate for an hour every day, only eat organic home-cooked meals, avoid all plastics, cold plunge daily, and wake up naturally to the sound of birds outside.
