“You are never too old to reinvent yourself.” —Steve Harvey
When researchers ask people to rank their performance at work, an overwhelming majority will say they are above average, which is statistically impossible. We resist the idea that we are average in any way, but the truth is that while we might be exceptional in certain areas, the odds are we will be average in most. And that is okay. It’s normal. But, when it comes to behavior change, we want to be the exception because failure is the rule.
Statistics like 92% of New Year’s resolutions end in failure can be disheartening, especially to our Riders, who like to focus on problems, but it’s all a matter of perspective. If 92% fail, that means 8% are successful. What do they do differently?
The majority of those who succeed have the following in common: they start small, set realistic and measurable goals, track their progress, and stay positive. Shrinking the Habit ensures you will start small, and maintaining a habit tracker will make you unbelievably consistent, so you are guaranteed to make the progress that’ll keep you motivated and optimistic.
Most people who fail to quit smoking, lose weight, quit drinking, develop an exercise regimen, or make other significant behavioral changes make two common mistakes. First, they overestimate their willpower. Second, they underestimate the challenge of behavior change.
It’s great to be optimistic, but we don’t want to be naive optimists. Naive optimists are the people who think they will always be brimming with willpower and motivation or that, after 21 days, it will get a lot easier. Many self-help books are based on the unsubstantiated notion that after three weeks or 30 days, performing a new behavior will be effortless. As something becomes a habit, it will get easier, but the idea that it will be effortless is ridiculous.
Other self-improvement gurus will tell you that it’s going to be hard. It’s supposed to be hard, but I am telling you, it doesn’t have to be, and telling your Elephant something will be hard isn’t going to motivate him. It will demoralize him, and when you lose the Elephant, you lose any chance of success.
When you start with big, ambitious habits, you are making it more challenging than it needs to be. You are forcing your Rider to bully your Elephant into doing more than he’s comfortable with. And as you know, the bigger the ask, the more resistance he’ll put up. To make matters worse, you’re making the task more intimidating to your Rider, eroding his resolve.
People are quick to blame themselves but reluctant to blame their strategy. But forcing yourself to exert more effort than you can sustain is a strategic mistake, like starting a marathon at a dead sprint. I think you’d have to agree that this would be a terrible strategy.
If you had to run a marathon, especially one you hadn’t trained for, you’d pace yourself. So how is starting with big daily commitments to produce a life-long habit any different? It isn’t.
Don’t be afraid to shrink your exercise commitment down. Many people will scoff at the effectiveness of a 5-minute workout, but there is a growing body of research showing that 5 minutes or less of intense exercise can produce real and meaningful results. And you’d have to agree that it is infinitely better than doing nothing.
Most of my weekday morning cardio sessions are over in less than 10 minutes, with most sessions lasting 5 to 7 minutes. Yet, I’m able to maintain a relatively high level of aerobic conditioning with an average resting heart rate of 46 beats per minute. I’ve discovered that this amount of training is enough to maintain a solid foundation of aerobic fitness while helping me avoid overuse injuries. These short priming sessions also rev up my metabolism, improve my mood for hours, and prime my mind for peak performance without adding much time to my morning routine.
For those worried that Shrinking the Habit will cause you to do less, that is just wrong. Before I shrunk down my cardio sessions, I rarely did any cardio. Now, I do it every weekday, and my cardio fitness is better than it has been in years. When it comes to fitness, consistently repeating a small amount of work reaps superior results than the heroic efforts of a weekend warrior.
I usually do the minimum amount of cardio training because it isn’t what I enjoy, nor is it my exercise priority. I have always prioritized strength training over cardio training. For this reason, I spend a lot more time strength training. I lift during lunch because I have more time available to train.
You could take the opposite approach based on your preferences and priorities. Keep your strength training sessions short, closer to the minimum requirement, and devote more time to cardio. Taking a single set to failure has been shown to produce excellent results and should only take a minute or two to perform. Like high-intensity interval training, you can abbreviate your workouts when you push the intensity to the limit.
The beauty of this system is that you can do as much or as little as you want after you meet the minimum requirement. You have complete autonomy.
Your Rider knows what to do and doesn’t feel overwhelmed by it, and he lets the Elephant decide when to stop so he doesn’t feel bullied. The system maximizes their respective strengths while mitigating their weaknesses.
My second book, Lean by Habit – A Bulletproof Plan for Body Transformation is NOW available on Kindle. If you prefer audio, did you know that the Alexa App can read Kindle books while you’re driving or going about your day?
SAMPLE THE FIRST HOUR FOR FREE: leanbyhabit.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/LEAN-BY-HABIT-Better-1.m4a
Small Changes, Fantastic Results
If you are looking for a simple, common-sense approach to weight loss that creates a strong-firm body for life, Lean by Habit is it! It contains everything you need to get in great shape. You’ll have eight free downloadable training programs to choose from based on your goals, a flexible diet, a habit tracker scorecard, and other execution-focused materials to help you succeed.
Lean by Habit combines the best behavioral and exercise science to produce outstanding results through short-daily bouts of exercise. Fifteen minutes is all you need to start getting leaner, fitter, and stronger.
If you are motivated to improve how you look and feel, the time to act is NOW! Don’t give your motivation a chance to wane and your excuses time to talk you out of it. When it comes to improving your life, there is no place better to start than with your habits, and there is no better program than this one to help you do it.
Click HERE to get it delivered to your device and start taking those small steps that produce tremendous results. Act now before the book increases to its normal price of $9.99.
This book contains:
- The Three-Step Process for Behavior Change
- The Four Elements of Execution
- Eight Programs (with downloadable training logs)
- A Habit Tracker Weight Loss Scorecard
- A Flexible Diet
The AUDIBLE and PRINT versions will be available in November 2024.
If I can help you overcome challenges or answer questions, please email me at LeanByHabit@gmail.com.
Is there a better investment than the one you make in yourself? Purchase Lean by Habit NOW and start making the small changes that add up to spectacular results.
All the best,
Jeff Emblen
Author of Lean By Habit and The Fat Loss Habit
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