Want to Improve your Health? Find your 20%
Nova Health Club • April 15, 2019
The question you need to ask yourself is: “What 20% of activities/habits should I practice that will give me 80% of the results I am looking for?” If you are able to figure this out then you will be part of the few who actually makes progress towards their health and fitness goals.
The 80/20 Rule is taken from Vilfredo Pareto, an economist and philosopher from the 1800s. He introduced the concept of Pareto’s Law that is better known today as the 80/20 Rule. He noticed that 20% of the peas in his garden contributed to 80% of the yields. Pareto continued to demonstrate this idea in other areas of life and today the idea exists as a guiding principle in many management consulting and self-improvement books. Essentially, 80% of the output you are looking for comes from 20% of your input.
Let’s get back to thinking about your health. The majority of people make few positive changes to their health and fitness each year because they spend their time on the wrong activities. Yes, exercise and nutrition is the answer but it is too broad and must be more specific for you. For example, most people will read an Internet article about how to lose body fat. Without knowing, they begin to implement an exercise or nutrition program that is not customized therefore unsustainable. After a period of time, they see they are not much closer to their goal so they stop. The cycle then repeats the next time they feel motivated and happen upon another article or a friend telling them the new plan they must try. Most information you find about health is not specific to you and could be holding you back from attaining your personal goals. Your body is complex and your lifestyle may be just as complex, which is why a cookie cutter exercise program found in the latest best selling book or the latest nutritional supplement seen on the talk show probably will not work.
Chances are you are busy with business, family, organizing your life and completing daily essentials just to maintain. Therefore, you need to be effective with each choice and action you take. If you are doing this right you will find that 20% activity and ‘hack’ your way towards results. Some of the most effective hacks I have seen people execute are far from being intensive exercise programs or all or none nutrition strategies. If working on your health is something you know you need to do, consider some of the below hacks that may end up being the 20% of input you need to reach 80% of your goals.
1) Nutrition
Start doing a food journal for 1month
Drink 3L of water a day
Have protein with breakfast
Have 2 or 3 fists of veggies on your dinner plate
Eliminate (or seriously cut back) on sugar consumption
2) Exercise
Sit for no longer than 2hrs at a time
Walk on your lunch break
Go from walking to running
If you only do cardio, begin strength training
Purchase an activity tracker and get 10,000 steps/day
3) Stress Management
Sleep a minimum of 7 hours a night
Start to meditate
Take time to focus on your breathing
Decrease exercise intensity/volume (if doing too much)
Delegate or delete something off your plate
Choosing from one of the above depends on what level you currently are at. For example, if your nutrition is already pretty good then it may be exercise that you want to focus on. If you have been practicing good nutrition and exercising for a long time then maybe it's stress management you need to focus on. In the latter case, exercising more may not help at all if you are not getting enough sleep. In some cases, exercising less and sleeping more will be the secret sauce or 20% activity to provide you with 80% of the results you are looking for. Lastly, when choosing a new habit you must ask yourself: “On a scale from 1 to 10 how confident am I that I can do this consistently.” If the answer is anything less than an 8 then do not begin and move on to the next habit. In order to be successful, you must pick a habit that you are confident in doing. If changing your nutrition is too challenging to start with then maybe exercising three times a week is a better habit to begin with.
To recap, cookie cutter exercise and nutrition programs do not work for most people. You will need to first assess what level you are at and then experiment to find the few habits/activities that will bring you most of your results. Finding the best habits to work on can be a challenge and that is why professional personal training coaches can help you. Once you find that habit or two to work on, you have discovered your productivity hack(s) and this is the 20% that will bring you the 80%. If you want to learn more about discovering your own hacks please write me. I am always happy to help.
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