One of the biggest misconceptions about weight loss, exercise consistency, and habit-building is that the most successful people have the most willpower.
Well, we have good news and more good news.
The good news? Willpower is not the primary driver of success. More good news? This means you can develop the skills, mindsets, and habits necessary to make progress without willpower.
After helping over 30,000 people reach their goals, we've found that the people who reach their health goals and maintain their results long-term are the people who accept the fact that willpower comes and goes and can't be the primary source of decision-making.
Today, we're sharing a few tips to help you hack your willpower and make healthy choices more easily and consistently.
1. Don’t Make Your Willpower Work Overtime
Willpower is like a muscle; the more you use it, the more tired it gets. Make your "hardest" food decisions early in the day, before your brain gets tired. If you’re going to dinner with friends, taking a vacation, or just heading to the park with your kids, make as many food decisions in advance as possible. This way, you can limit overall choices and don't have to rely on willpower later on when it is already zapped. Here are a few quick tips:
- Read restaurant menus ahead of time and pick the meal you're going to order
- Pack your own snacks to avoid hunger
- Set goals and expectations around food choices and portion sizes
2. Rely on Routines
Did you know that your brain makes over 30,000 daily decisions, and over 200 of these decisions are about food? How do all of these small decisions happen without your awareness? Routine!
Routine allows you to automate the "small" decisions so you have more brain power (read: willpower!) available for the bigger ones. Use this to your advantage! Drink water with every meal, follow a consistent training schedule, set aside time a few days per week to prep protein, plan your breakfast, lunch, and dinner ahead of time, etc.
When you automate the food and lifestyle decisions you have to make every day, you'll have more willpower left over to utilize when the harder decisions and temptations crop up.
3. Identify Opportunities to Practice Willpower
Remember that willpower muscle metaphor? While it is true that using your willpower is sometimes like taxing a muscle, the more you train, the stronger you get.
In other words, identifying low-stakes opportunities to practice your willpower will help you build confidence. Sometimes, you just have to get in the reps.
Build confidence in yourself and your ability to prioritize your goals whenever possible. Next time you make a food choice you're proud of, you'll notice that the following food choices become a lot easier. Your confidence (sometimes mistaken for willpower) will grow stronger each time until, eventually, making good choices takes little effort!
4. Adopt the 1-Minute Rule
Make every tricky decision 60 seconds harder. Wait a full minute before you grab a treat or give in to food temptation. Breathe, sip some water, chat with a friend, and give your rational brain some time to catch up with your body. At that point, you can make a more intentional choice. This could look like choosing a healthier option or planning around a treat!
In other words, these 60 seconds will give you some time to respond to your initial craving intentionally instead of reacting to it and making a choice you may regret.
5. Focus On The Positive
Rather than focusing on foods you “can’t” have, think of what you "can" have. Instead of saying I "have to," say I "get to," "I want to," or "I'm choosing to," and instead of saying this is happening "to me," try this is happening "for me."
These simple shifts in mindset and language will reframe a healthy choice that feels like a chore to a choice you want to make because it brings you closer to your ultimate health goal.
6. Grow and Move on
There is no room for regret and shame regarding food choices. Those thoughts and feelings pull negative emotions into the present, which impacts future food choices.
The kinder you are to yourself, and the faster you move on from past food choices you're not so proud of, the more positive your mindset will be and the easier it will be to make good choices that align with your goals now and in the future.
If you need help hacking your willpower, try one-on-one nutrition coaching. Your coach will work to get to know you and the decisions you face each day. Then, they'll help you develop the routines, habits, and mindsets necessary to reach your unique goals.
