The Battle between Consistency and Perfection

In the journey to lose weight and adopt better lifestyle habits, perfection is NOT the goal. Consistency, however, IS the means and the end.


In working with one of my patients this week, I noticed that she was apologizing throughout our session. We were reviewing her food journal, and every time we came across a food she deemed "unacceptable" she apologized for "messing up" or making a "mistake." This is not an uncommon experience—patients tend to approach weight loss as if there are hard and fast rules that can't be violated. In the worst form, people give up after breaking these rules or "cheating" as most people call it. They find that they can't get back on track because they only anticipate that they will find themselves breaking the rules again very shortly.


The All or None way of thinking can dominate your approach to healthy lifestyle behaviors, and when you're on track, you feel invincible and incredibly focused. However, when you're off track, you're a train wreck full of despair. The All or None approach may be helping you in some aspects of your life. For example, you may be able to block out distractions and have laser-like focus on work projects. This can lead to you being incredibly successful and accomplished, but it won't help you when you're trying to modify your lifestyle.

Sometimes, you may miss the mark. Just keep aiming in the right direction

Why can't this approach work? Healthy living and losing weight is not governed by some set of rules and regulations. Despite what some people may have you believe, there are many effective strategies to achieving a healthy lifestyle and weight. You have to find a way of doing things that works for you, based on your situations and unique challenges. As you develop this approach, your goal is to implement it consistently. You also have to take ownership of the actions and choices you make using a framework other than "cheating." You're not cheating anyone if you eat the chimichanga and your original intent was to get the grilled fish. That was a choice you made, and you should own it. When you own it, you have to then understand why you made the choice and how you can make other choices that are consistent with your goals the next time.


Liberate yourself from the unattainable goal of perfection and go for consistency. See how much easier that feels already!

Things you learn in the grocery store: 3 common mistakes made in the gym

I have a knack for choosing the longest, slowest line at the grocery store (please tell me I’m not alone in this feat).  This rainy, dreary afternoon was no different, but I did overhear a couple discussing their frustration with weight loss and how exercise just "doesn't work."  I tried not to eavesdrop, but honestly I was hanging onto every word they said.  I wasn't getting any closer to checking out, so we stood in line, they discussed, and I listened. 

There are several different directions to go with this topic, but I chose to tackle (in my own head of course) the top three mistakes people make in the gym with exercise.  First, the body responds to change, and it is all too common (and easy) to start an exercise program and the next thing you know time has elapsed and you are doing the exact same thing over and over again.  Not only is this monotonous and mundane, but you won’t be optimizing the many benefits of physical activity.  There is a term in exercise world referred to as the 'overload principal' that simply states you have to be constantly thinking ahead and looking for the next step.  Take for example, walking for 30 minutes on a treadmill.  You will get a lot more out of this activity if you give yourself permission to push buttons.  Try mixing up the speed/grade/intensity.  Try a different exercise all together.  You may find you can decrease your time while increasing intensity, and who wouldn’t want more time on their hands. 

Second, one of my favorite adapted sayings in the gym has become “you have to straighten before you can strengthen.”  I find this especially true of people beginning an exercise program.  Keep in mind we learn to crawl before we walk and walk before we run; the same holds true with focusing on proper form and technique.  This statement encompasses a broad spectrum, but if you are not completing full range of motion on a bicep curl or maintaining proper posture on the elliptical machine you may be in fact setting yourself up for injury.  Maybe even more common, I run into a lot of people with back and neck pain.  There could be a lot of reasons for this, but if you are not addressing the potential postural problems with flexibility, and proper weight training, you could end up aggravating a problem.

Third, when I finally made it out of the grocery store, I hear my new friends say, “I want to get rid of these love handles and I do over 100 sit-ups every day.”  Wow, where do I start?  They have the strongest abs of anyone I know but it’s all behind a layer of fat.  We all know what love handles are, and we all want to get rid of them.  The question is how do we do it?  The ‘love handle’ is basically a build up of fat around the waist, and all the crunches, twists, and sit-ups in the world won’t get rid of them.  The answer to getting rid of fat throughout the body requires a combination of cardio, resistance training and a solid diet plan that leads to a calorie deficit. 

While exercise is something that feels natural (at least to some), there is a right way and a wrong way to approach it. Set yourself up for success by staying informed. Let’s get moving together!

Hurry up!

Sometimes our patience can wear thin, especially when our expectations aren't met. In the process of losing weight, patience truly is a virtue.

When most patients come to our program, they focus on what they want at the end of the process. They have a specific goal in mind which is usually a certain number of pounds they would like to weigh. The idea of reaching that goal is often singular in their mind. By this, I mean that instead of seeing a number of different behaviors that have to be done to achieve the goal of losing weight, they think of it as one simple thing.

However, anyone who has done it successfully knows that losing weight is a function of doing several things together. And, if you're doing it correctly, there is benefit from each of the things that you are doing even if they don't individually lead to weight loss. For example, being physically activity on a regular basis is good for your weight, but also lowers blood pressure, cholesterol, and improves your mood. All of these are beneficial for you, even if you don't lose a pound from being physically active.

The process of losing weight is not linear-- you can't predict with any consistency what will happen with your weight on a day to day basis even if you repeat the same exact behaviors every day. If you are not patient, this can be frustrating and you begin to wonder, "What did I do wrong?" If you have been maintaining the healthy behaviors that are part of your new lifestyle, you've done NOTHING wrong. In fact, you've been practicing the behaviors that are going to keep you healthy lifelong. When you take this perspective, your weight loss is a nice by-product of your healthy lifestyle, not your singular focus.

Now you can save your patience for something else...like traffic on highway 280!