Nutrition: Why Willpower and Motivation Aren't Enough
Kate Irwin • June 8, 2020
Replace Motivation and Willpower With Habit Stacking
When is the last time you started a new nutritional strategy only to give up because you lost your motivation or willpower? This is a vicious (and important) cycle that needs to be addressed. The truth is no amount of motivation or willpower will get you to your goals. Body composition changes require dedication day in and day out and the best way to do that is to build solid habits into your daily routine. By making your nutritional changes a habit, rather than relying on will power, you will be better able to reach your goals without the risk of disappointment.
We’ve all heard it takes 21 days to create a new habit, and while this can prove to be true it does mean adding or altering a habit is easy. The goal with nutritional changes is to try and make them easy to remember and execute. The less barriers you have the better your chance of succeeding!
The best and easiest way to change a habit is to link the new habit to something that you already do on a daily basis, called habit stacking. We are going to walk through a couple of examples then I will ask you to come up with your habits.
Example 1:
New habit:
I would like to drink more water each day
Current habit:
I make coffee every single morning (who would ever miss making coffee?)
Habit stacking:
Every morning as I fill my coffee machine with water, I pour myself a glass of water and drink it while my coffee brews
Result:
I consume one extra glass of water per day, and don’t have to consciously think about it, I have tied it to a habit I already have!
Example 2:
New habit:
I want to stop snacking on unhealthy foods while I prepare dinner
Current habit:
I plan my meals for the week and cook at home five days a week
Habit stacking:
When I plan out my meals I plan out a vegetable snack BEFORE dinner. When I start to prepare dinner I first get out my vegetable snack. (My favourites are carrot sticks and hummus, cucumber and tzatziki, or cherry tomatoes)
Result:
I have modified my current habit and increased my vegetable intake at the same time
Example 3:
New Habit:
Stop eating candy and chocolate treats in the afternoon
Current Habit:
I pack my work back every night with my computer
Habit Stacking:
Every night when I pack my computer I put a protein bar in my bag as well
Result:
If I get the urge to have a sweet treat mid afternoon I have immediate access to a protein bar which not only will be less sugar but will also increase my daily protein intake, helping me even further towards my goals
Now it’s your turn, take 5 minutes and answer the following questions:
What is one nutritional habit you would like to change?
What is something that you do every day that you could link this nutritional strategy to?
How can you link the two to increase your chances of success in altering your habit?
Now you may think that one small change isn’t going to make or break your goals but by changing one small habit at a time it not only makes it simple but it also makes it sustainable. If I ask you to turn your life upside down to change your nutrition the odds are very high that you won’t maintain that. On the other hand if you change one habit today and focus on continuing it day in and day out that small change will be compounded as you make other small changes in the future.
If you need more examples or need help finding a way to stack your new habit with an old habit please reach out to one of our Nova Health Club Coaches or you can sign up for our online Nutritional Coaching
to help you make sustainable changes that you can maintain long-term.
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