Is autonomy necessary for success?

In fitness and nutrition it is accepted that in order to create an environment of success we must work to create a pathway towards autonomy. But is this really the case?

Autonomy is the freedom of control from outside influence. The idea that we need autonomy stems from the tenets of Self Determination Theory which states that humans need competency, autonomy, and relatedness to achieve emotional or psychological growth. Autonomy in practice shows that we no longer need to rely on external motivators in order to pursue mastery in a chosen task and instead are pursuing it for the intrinsic value it brings us.

While autonomy is most certainly a benefit for practices in which we are pursuing mastery, not everything in our life will hold that level of importance. Many behaviors and actions we wish to engage in are simply conduits toward an outcome that we wish to see.

As fitness professionals, we often apply our own values to those around us. However, most of the people I work with have interests and responsibilities that far outweigh their desire to train and dedicate time to nutrition. Who am I to ascribe my values to anyone else? So framing how we determine autonomy is important.

Autonomy for a client in NYC who lives in a studio apartment might mean subscribing to a meal prep service. While this might not hold the same advantages that cooking at home might, it may actually provide more autonomy; we are freeing up bandwidth. Autonomy for a client who has been tracking macros for some measure of time and achieved success in that realm may look like no longer tracking food but instead working to better understand hunger cues.

In some cases autonomy in the sense of “fleeing the nest” is not even a desire. Some people want to work with a coach or mentor or guide for the relatedness, another key element of growth. They have established as much autonomy as they need to feel competence and like having the oversight a coach might provide.

Autonomy is not necessarily independence, it may look like interdependence. It also might not be necessary for success. We need to stop classifying success as mastery; not everyone wants to master nutrition and fitness goals. If I can provide enough for a client to be able to provide for themselves and they still want to work together we have engaged in process of reciprocal altruism. We both win. I don’t want a long term client to need me, I want them to choose me. Then we both can engage in moving forward together.

Autonomy might not need to be autonomous. We might be selling a product to a problem that doesn’t exist. And that could be holding us back.