Embracing the journey toward wellness begins with the courage and patience to confront our most persistent challenges. In this blog, we address the common struggles and misconceptions around improving our health and behaviour change, including the struggle to maintain consistent motivation, the influence of societal norms and expectations that affect our choices and the difficulty of changing long-standing habits. Let’s explore five key considerations backed by the latest scientific research to move beyond the thoughts and behaviours that hold us back from living our best lives.
Challenging the Status Quo Through Questioning Can Lead to Healthier Choices
Ingrained beliefs, outdated information or views may keep us stuck. This isn’t about denying reality, but is “I don’t have the time” or “it’s too late for me” truer? Research on patient activation underscores the value of patients taking an active role in being informed, engaged, and proactive in their healthcare decisions.1 This can include asking critical questions about our care, seeking out information, and exploring holistic, personalized approaches to our health. By doing so, we become partners in our healthcare rather than passive recipients, which has been proven to lead to confidence that fosters better health outcomes and reduced healthcare costs.
While we clearly need knowledge to improve our health, sometimes, we must also ‘unlearn’ what we previously learned to move forward. We see the world through our beliefs, experiences, and emotions. What we have learned and the behaviours that once served us, through no fault of our own, may limit our perceptions of what we believe is possible, the power we hold, and our ability to take steps towards our best life. Giving ourselves permission to delve into new research, the latest in holistic health practices that influence our genetics (the field of epigenetics), and consider alternative perspectives broadens our understanding. It unveils a world of new choices and decision points to help us pursue our health goals.
Write a Clear Vision and Outcomes for Your Health Goals
“You can’t be what you can’t see.” Marian Wright Edelman
Broadly, research studies and theories collectively suggest that writing out a vision for one’s life can enhance clarity, commitment, motivation, and, ultimately, the likelihood of achieving your desired health outcomes.
Locke and Latham’s Goal Setting Theory states that specific, challenging goals enhance performance. Writing down goals is an integral part of this process as it helps to clarify the outcomes to be achieved. With goals, ways of being and behavioural outcomes clearly defined, it is easier to see a more straightforward path for developing action steps and milestones, consequently increasing commitment to the goal. A compelling vision for the “next level version” of yourself also becomes a beckoning beacon of inspiration you can tap into when motivation is waning.
“Aim Up” and Embrace Progress Over Perfection
“I haven’t failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.“ Thomas Edison
Research widely acknowledges the non-linear nature of the behaviour change process, recognizing that a normal part of the change process is for individuals to cycle through different “stages of change” from the “action stage” back to “contemplation” or “preparation” multiple times before achieving long term change. The Stages of Change Model2 by Prochaska shows that emphasis should be placed on learning and growth from each cycle rather than viewing relapse as a failure to achieve the behaviour changes we seek. The popular idea that it takes 21 days to form a habit is a myth. Research shows that, on average, it takes 66 days for habits to start to feel automatic. However, depending on the person, behaviour and situation, it can take up to 254 days for more complex changes. Let’s normalize our efforts.
“Just be consistent” or “just do it” also aren’t necessarily helpful when attempting complex or challenging behaviour changes. “Just do it” oversimplifies a complex process of creating sustainable behaviour changes and overcoming obstacles. “Just be consistent” often creates negative self-talk and “all or nothing thinking” that lead us to abandon our attempts at change and revert to old habits when setbacks occur. Viewing our attempt as a complete failure, we think, “I’ve already messed up, so there’s no point in continuing. This mindset overlooks the importance of balance, flexibility, and the cumulative effect of generally healthy choices over time.
Discipline and consistency often develop as part of the change process when we see ourselves succeeding and overcoming obstacles rather than prerequisites for success. The mindset we need is understanding our motivations, patience in dealing with setbacks, navigating environmental influences, and tailored strategies that account for our individual differences. Our health should not be a destination with strict rules but part of the path we walk of trial and correction and bouncing back as quickly as possible from setbacks.
Equip Yourself With Strategies and Tools for the Management of Stress and Emotions
Broad research shows that how we manage stress significantly affects our physical health, and suppression of emotions has also been linked to disease and poor health outcomes. Our thoughts and emotions are at the core of our well-being and profoundly impact our behaviours.
One tool you can utilize is the ABCs of managing thoughts and emotions.
A = Awareness, cultivate awareness of our thoughts and increase our emotional vocabulary. A strategy you can use for emotional regulation and mindfulness is the “Name it to tame it” strategy.
B = Befriend the thought or emotion with curiosity, patience, and self-compassion like we would show up for a friend.
C = Choose what we want to cultivate in ourselves or our environment.
Create an Environment for Maximum Support of Goals
Carefully designing our environment to support behaviour change goals can significantly enhance our ability to stay focused, motivated, and on track toward achieving lasting change. Here are a few tips:
- Remove Temptations
- Know your triggers
- Prepare for Obstacles- Anticipate challenges and plan how to deal with them. Having plan B’s or strategies for potential setbacks can help you stay on track when pivots or adjustments become necessary.
- Disrupt habitual patterns at vulnerable times. If you want to quit smoking and you light up at the same traffic light on the way to work every morning, then change your route. Enter through the front door of the office, not the door where the smokers hang out.
- Create Visual Reminders- Place visual cues in your environment that remind you of your goals. For example, if your goal is to exercise more, keep your workout gear in a visible spot as a reminder to stay active.
- Assume a mindset of trial and correction. If something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to make adjustments or try something new.
- Optimize for Convenience: Make desired behaviours as easy as possible to adopt. For example, always keep a water bottle with you if you want to drink more water. If you aim to read more, have a book readily available in places where you might have downtime.
- Cultivate a Supportive Social Environment- Surround yourself with people who support and encourage your goals. Share your goals with friends and family, or join a group with similar objectives. A supportive community can offer encouragement, accountability, and advice.
- Make it fun! Incorporating elements of fun and play into your behaviour change efforts can make the process more enjoyable and less of a chore. For instance, if you want to be more active, choose physical activities you genuinely enjoy, like dancing, hiking, or playing a sport. Adding a fun component increases your motivation and makes it more likely that you’ll stick with the change over the long term.
- Limit Distractions- Identify sources of distraction in your environment and find ways to minimize them. Consider setting timers, using website blockers during work hours, turning off unnecessary notifications on your phone, or setting specific times for checking emails or social media.
- Use Habit Stacking- Popularized by James Clear in his book “Atomic Habits,” the principle is based on the idea that it’s easier to incorporate a new habit into your routine by linking it to a habit that’s already well-established in your daily life. The well-established current habit is used as a natural trigger to remind you to incorporate the new behaviour, effectively “stacking” them together.
Concluding these strategic steps, I urge you to grab a pen and paper or open your digital note-taking app. Reflect on the steps discussed here and start setting concrete, actionable goals. Write down what specific actions you’ll take to implement these strategies in your daily routine or add these items to your to-do list as part of your health goal-planning process. Your commitment to these steps can be the catalyst for profound change in your life. Let’s make your health aspirations tangible and achievable, starting now.
Imagine waking up feeling rested and ready for the day. You look forward to the day ahead. The morning begins not with a rush to caffeine and ticking off your to-do list but with clarity of mind to set a positive tone for the day ahead and intentional action. This simple shift has transformed your mornings, leaving you feeling centered and prepared to face whatever the day holds.
You have taken a pause to recalibrate the best version of yourself and genuinely embrace the stage of life you’re in, acknowledging that each phase, no matter how challenging, is a crucial step in your health journey. Whether you’re navigating health setbacks, personal loss, or the complexities of career changes, you know that these experiences are not just obstacles but stepping stones to a stronger, healthier version of yourself mentally, emotionally, and physically. By facing these challenges head-on, with patience and grace, you’re not only surviving; you’re moving towards your healthy living ideals, using each struggle to make necessary life changes and sustainable habits that bring you to authentic health and well-being. With continued action over time and positive momentum forward, you feel a sense of empowerment and accomplishment, fueling your motivation to keep pushing forward.
References
- https://www.cdc.gov/healthliteracy/researchevaluate/patient-engage.html#:~:text=The%20Patient%20Activation%20Measure%20is,one’s%20health%20to%20being%20proactive. ↩︎
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556005/
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About the Author
Heather Budd is a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, trained by the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy. She specializes in guiding individuals through lifestyle transformations to manage chronic illness and combat fatigue. With a diverse background in business, leadership and a profound personal health journey, Heather empowers clients to reclaim their health and extend their health span.