Recently, I was chatting with a long-term client. She and I had worked together on and off – mostly on – for over three years. In that time, she’s lost over eighty pounds and built up a consistent workout regimen. This did not, as you can well imagine, happen overnight. She thanked me for sticking with her and encouraging her to go slow and steady.

Not a lot of my clients appreciate this approach. In fact, some are downright hostile to the concept of making small, measurable goals. They want faster results, a bigger payoff. I do not promise to get significant results in the short term. I also do not encourage huge, sweeping changes.

Why?

Well, I have found for myself and for others like the previously mentioned client, that habit-based change and behavior modification is more likely to stick if you make small changes one at a time, over time. At this time of the year, many people talk about resolutions and they’re usually unsustainable.

When I first embarked on my weight loss journey over seven years ago now, I began by exercising. I currently exercise for up to an hour a day seven days a week. I do a variety of activities such as rowing, biking, walking on the treadmill, yoga, barre class (sort of like ballet with strength training and lots of isometrics) and pickleball. That’s not to make anyone insecure about where they’re at, but to let you know what possibilities there are.

I began by working out five minutes a day, twice a week on the recumbent bike. I was so out of shape; you’d have thought I ran the Boston Marathon with all the sweat pouring off on me. It was difficult, but I stuck with it. I don’t necessarily think that my journey will work for everyone, but what I learned, over time, is that I can’t – it just doesn’t serve me – make sweeping changes – and stick to them.

Currently, I eat low-to-no sugar, no high fructose corn syrup, gluten free and mostly pescatarian. I realize my eating plan is rather restrictive and don’t advocate it for everyone. I have certain food sensitivities, so I honor them, but I did not get to this point all at once either. I experimented for years, finally learning what works best for me and my body.

Everybody is different and has different nutritional requirements. It takes time to figure out what works best for you – and patience. That’s the main thing that behavior modification requires – patience. We often want a quick fix or impressive results. Truthfully, those changes are not sustainable and the weight we lose from them is short-lived. Many times, we wind up gaining more weight in the long-term and doing more harm to our bodies than good.

If we engage in small, consistent changes that are sustainable then we can make radical shifts in health and fitness over the course of several years. I know my approach is not for everyone, but I do know from my own personal experience and that of my clients who stay the course, it is not just possible but absolutely doable and, once these habits change, we also change and don’t wish to go back to the way things were previously.

If you’re looking for long-lasting change that is slow and steady, measured and measurable, then I’m the right coach for you. I’d love to chat with you. Reach out to me at dcgoodson@gmail.com and let’s set up a time for your 60-minute complimentary session. What have you got to lose but some bad habits?