15 Oct Your Problem Isn’t Self Discipline and You Don’t Need Someone to Kick Your Butt
SOMEWHERE IN BALTIMORE…
– “I want to lose about 50 pounds, restore energy, and just look and feel healthy again.”
– “Awesome. And why are you looking to start with a personal trainer now?”
– “Honestly, I just need someone to kick my butt. I feel like I know WHAT to do, I just can’t get myself to DO it…”
“…I guess I just have no self-discipline.”
The above exchange is a real one that I’ve had.
Not once. Not twice.
I’ve had that conversation with about 70% of all clients who have applied for the Fit2Go Personal Training program (for which, by the way, we have 3 spots left for January — apply here).
“You’re wrong, that’s not the issue.”
That’s the next part.
That’s me, flat out telling a potential client that they don’t know why they’re hiring a personal trainer and that, in fact, I do.
(Yeah… so you probably wouldn’t want to come to me for any sales advice.)
But why would I tell a client that she’s wrong about needing someone to kick her butt? How can I be so sure? And why does it even need to be said?
Although I’m only beginning to get to know the client at this point, I’ve already had plenty of time to get know fitness programs and how/why people adhere to them. I’ve had many years’ worth of data with hundreds and hundreds of client cases to study.
What I’ve found is a recurring theme. A simple truth:
The problem is almost never self-discipline.
The problem is that perceived effort is greater than perceived reward.
In other words, it isn’t worth it.
Why Isn’t Jeff Sticking to his Fitness Plan?
Let’s illustrate this idea with my best friend, Jeff. Jeff wants to lose weight, but has been struggling to stick with his fitness plan lately.
Now, there are a few possible explanations for Jeff’s struggle:
Option #1:
Jeff’s fitness plan sucks. He’s following a health guru who told him that he can only eat grass-fed, gluten-free kale. He wants to lose weight, but it’s just too hard.
Option #2:
Jeff actually doesn’t want to lose weight that badly. So his fitness plan might not require much effort, but it’s more effort than losing weight is worth to him.
Option #3:
Jeff wants to lose weight very badly and his fitness plan isn’t too hard, but he questions the plan’s effectiveness. Jeff doesn’t fully believe that following this plan will cause him to lose weight.
No matter which option applies to Jeff, the bottom line is that he perceives the difficulty involved in completing his fitness plan to be greater than the reward he will get for it. Or, again, it isn’t worth it.
OK, truth time. Jeff isn’t my best friend.
I have nothing against Jeff — he just doesn’t exist. But his struggle certainly does exist. We’ve had many real world Fit2Go Personal Training clients dealing with exactly these issues.
So if Jeff’s struggle applies to you, stop beating yourself up. You’re not incapable and you’re not lazy. But you are smart enough to choose not to expend effort on something if it’s not worth it.
If you want to adhere to a fitness program, don’t tell yourself to “just do it”.
Nike’s got it all wrong!
Instead, figure out why the cost of your fitness program outweighs its benefit. Address that and you’ll see real progress.
And then you can stop telling people to kick your butt — you won’t need it.
