Health and fitness isn't a sprint—it's a lifelong journey. Crash diets (a weight-loss diet undertaken with the aim of achieving very rapid results), extreme workout plans, or rigid sleep schedules often fail because they're not sustainable. By focusing on flexibility, fun, and small, consistent actions, you'll create habits that endure, even when life gets busy or challenging. # Sustainability: Building Habits That Last This chapter offers strategies to help you stay on track, avoid burnout, and make health and fitness a natural part of who you are. Pick and choose what strategies resonate with you—the goal is to find what works for *your* life. ### Environmental (from Fix Your Environment) - **Audit Cues**: Every week or two, evaluate if your environments (home, work, car) have gained negative cues (e.g., junk food in sight) or lost positive ones (e.g., gym bag not prepped). Revisit the *Fix Your Environment Worksheet* to refresh your setup. - **Habit Stacking**: Attach new habits to existing routines. For example, floss right before brushing your teeth or listen to a book on tape while doing meal prep for the week. ### Accountability - **Accountability Partner/Group**: Find a friend, join/create a group, or work with a coach/mentor who shares your goals. Check in on a daily or weekly basis to stay motivated to stay on track. - **Journaling**: Write a sentence or two daily about your progress, track habits (e.g., workouts, meals), and log sleep/wake times. This creates a personal record you can reflect on and helps spot patterns over time. This is something I do every evening. I establish/remove habits at the beginning of every month. - **Weekly Scheduling**: Plan specific times and places for routine tasks like exercise, meal prep, or grocery shopping. For example, block off Saturday morning for shopping and Sunday afternoons for meal prepping. ### Positive Mental Environment - **Don’t Overdo It**: Resist the urge to go all-out on workouts, diets, or sleep schedules. Pushing too hard can lead to burnout—start with manageable goals, like 2 days in the gym a week and one healthy meal a day. - **Realistic Expectations**: Progress isn’t linear. Accept that some days or weeks will be better than others. Celebrate small wins, like choosing water over soda, and remember that starting is progress in itself. - **Resolve Anxiety Triggers**: Tackle tasks or situations that cause stress instead of avoiding them. For example, if unpaid bills stress you out, plan to sit down and pay them off after work. You feel much better without anxiety inducing tasks/situations hanging over your head. - **Avoid Unnecessary Stress**: Cut out activities that drain your mental energy. For instance, I stopped playing competitive video games like League of Legends because losing matches ruined my mood. Now, I feel much less frustrated. - **Plan for Disruptions**: Have backup plans for when life throws curveballs. Have an at-home workout routine for days you can’t hit the gym or have a preferred (mostly-healthy) fast food meal when you're out and don't have access to your prepped/planned meals. ### Focus on You - **Be Patient with Yourself**: New habits take time to stick. Your current lifestyle is deeply ingrained, so give yourself grace if you return to old habits. Think of it as learning to ride a bike, wobbles, and even falling off is normal. - **Physique Journal**: Take “before” photos and log health markers (e.g., weight, energy levels) in a journal. Write how you feel about your body and life, and note the role model you want to be. Update this journal every 3-6 months for motivation and look back on where you've come from during times when you're not very motivated. Seeing your progress over time can be a powerful reminder of how far you’ve come. - **Avoid Comparisons**: Don’t measure yourself against others. Compare yourself to your past self. If you’re more consistent today than six months ago, that’s a win. - **Fit Habits to Your Schedule**: Make healthy habits work with your life. Workout in the morning, evening, or even on your lunch break. Prep and eat meals when it suits you, flexibility is key. - **80/20 Rule**: Aim to stick to your plan 80% of the time. Occasional indulgences, missed workouts, or late nights are fine as long as they’re exceptions, not the norm. ### Make It Fun - **Alternate Exercises/Meals**: Have backup options for exercises and meals. If the gym’s equipment you wanted to use is taken and you want to finish your workout quickly, have an alternate exercise you could do. Have a list of different meals that you could eat, if you're not feeling your current meal setup. Keep a list of healthy recipes in Cronometer for variety. - **Weekly Community Activities**: Join a weekly class or group exercise like yoga, spin, or a running club. It’s a chance to meet people, stay active, and have fun. - **Goal Setting**: Set small, achievable goals like daily steps, water intake, or chatting with someone at the gym. For example, aim for 5,000 steps daily until it feels automatic, then increase to 7,000. Once these feel effortless, you’ve built a habit for life. - **Challenges**: Try fun challenges with friends, like a step-count competition or a 30-day pull-up streak. They add excitement without feeling like a chore. - **Races or Events**: Sign up for a 5K, triathlon, Tough Mudder, or powerlifting meet. These give you something to train for and a chance to see your progress in action. - **Try New Activities**: Explore activities like rock climbing, boxing, dance classes, pickleball, ultimate frisbee, soccer, or jiujitsu. They keep exercise fresh and build fitness without feeling like “work.” ## Start Today Building sustainable habits starts with one small action. Pick at least one strategy from this chapter—like habit stacking or journaling—and try it for a week. Write down why you chose it and how it feels after a week. Celebrate your progress, no matter how small, and watch how these habits transform your life over time.