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Making Healthy Changes Without Willpower!
By David Junno Psy.D.
Many of us think that doing the things that are good for us requires willpower. When we cannot make changes in our habits to improve our health, we say we are weak willed. If we do not do something because of a lack of willpower, we feel bad about ourselves. We feel shame. This can lead to discouragement and helplessness. Needless to say, this can really put a damper on our efforts to make positive changes in our lives. The other problem with willpower is, if we wanted more it is hard to get. Where does one find willpower? How do we create willpower?
Willpower is overrated!
I believe willpower is overrated when it comes to making changes in our lives. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines willpower as, energetic determination. All the energetic determination in the world is not going help us lift a 500-pound weight with a toothpick. However, very little energetic determination could lift this same weight with a flick of a switch, if we had a hydraulic car lift. The difference between these two situations is the resources we have available to handle the task.
Many of the problems in our lives, can be looked at as not having the resources available to manage the demands we face. When the demands are greater than the resources the result is a problem. For example, if our bodies are exposed to a virus (a demand), and we do not have the antibodies to fight of the virus (a resource), the result is sickness. Stress is another problem that fits this model. When we have a lot to do and we do not have much time, we are going to experience stress.
So what does this have to do with healthy living? Having to make changes in our habits to eat healthier and get more exercise are demands. If they weren’t demands, we would be able to do them easily. The results of not having the resources to manage these demands are overeating, eating the wrong foods, or being a couch potato.
By looking at our difficulties sticking to diet and exercise plans as a problem of resources rather than a lack of willpower, we give ourselves more options for successful action. Instead of trying to find new willpower, we can just increase our resources. As shown in the example of lifting the 500-pound weight, if we have enough resources we may actually need very little willpower.
Resources to increase
A short list of resources we can increase to maximize our success at making healthy lifestyle changes:
- Time: Time is essential to making any changes in our lives. We need time to learn, time to plan, and time to implement our plans. This is an essential resource.
- Knowledge: When it comes to making positive changes in our lives, ignorance is not bliss. The more we know, the better our choices are going to be.
- Social support: Things are always easier if we are not doing them alone.
- Problem solving: Taking a scientific approach to our problems gives us many more options for solving them. Look at all the breakthroughs science has made.
- Fun: Doing fun things makes us happier. The happier we are the more positive we feel. There is a great deal of evidence that having a positive optimistic outlook can improve our success in many areas of our lives.
- Faith: Faith is an important resource that can be developed. Self-help programs like AA use the idea of a higher power as a resource against addiction. Whenever we can enlist our beliefs in powers larger then ourselves, we increase our ability to persevere. Study, reflection on the wonders of the world, spiritual reflection, religion can all be sources of faith.
Quote:
It's not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes the difference.
Coach Bear Bryant
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Remember, having the right diet and getting enough exercise will not only improve your health- IT WILL IMPROVE YOU LIFE.
Until next time,
Dave Junno Psy.D. Dave Junno Psy.D. is a psychologist, coach and author of Lowering High Cholesterol and Reducing Your Risk of Heart Disease- READY OR NOT!
www.lower-high-cholesterol-ready-or-not.com
