Path of least resistance

FitnessDid you know there’s a theory that you get just a little bit of willpower each day? Just a tiny piece of resolve that gives you the power to eat that frog and make tough decisions.

You might think that the best way to utilize your little piece of daily willpower is to make yourself do or not do something. That could be exercising first thing in the morning or staying away from the biscuit tin at work. But actually it’s very expensive in terms of willpower to force yourself to do the right thing. You probably find yourself continually drawn to the path of least resistance. How often do you hit the snooze button, skip breakfast and instead grab a latte and muffin on the way to work? How many times a week do you have a sandwich for lunch because that’s what you always do?

You see for most of us the ultimate path of least resistance is a habit. Humans are creatures of habit and habits pull us into thinking, feeling and behavior patterns that are automatic. So the best use of your daily willpower dose is to create new habits. Once you build a new habit then you don’t need to use your willpower to do that thing because you do the new behavior naturally and automatically. You don’t have to think about it because it just happens and you free your willpower up to create another powerful new habit. Make sense?

When it comes to your health and fitness, the best habits are those that transform the path of least resistance into the path of healthy choices. Then you’ll start to get results because you’ve set your life up so that your habits are healthy ones and they’re the natural thing that you automatically do. For example, make it a habit to always schedule a couple of hours in your week to batch cook and freeze healthy meals. That means the next time you’re running late or have a busy day you have healthy options to choose from rather than unhealthy quick fix meals or reaching for the take away menu. Make healthy food the path of least resistance not the junk food.

So for the best results don’t waste your limited daily willpower allowance staying out of the biscuit tin. Instead use it to create a healthy habit which means you always have tasty, nutritious snacks to hand to satisfy your mid morning cravings. Transform your path of least resistance into the path of smart choices.

About the author

Julie Dennis is a weight loss specialist for women over 40 and through menopause. She is WATC's new fitness and health blogger. Follow Julie’s blog or visit: www.juliedennis.net.
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