Are you trying to move the goalposts?

The season for goal setting is upon us and we are all motivated by what (we hope) will be a much better year ahead. But setting goals means making change and change is hard. Achieving a goal is also about the journey, not the destination. So why do we try to move the goal posts to make it easier?

In nutrition, I really do want to make things as easy as possible in order to elicit the greatest possible response. There’s no reason to make things unnecessarily difficult. Yet one of the things that many people find difficult is increase their protein intake. Unfortunately the literature, as well as my observational data of well over a thousand people, is that under eating protein is massively detrimental to body composition. In a deficit it will lead to loss of muscle, in a surplus fat gain will likely be much higher. So why do so many resist?

It’s simple, we want to achieve the feeling of reaching a goal but we don’t always want to do what is required. Think about anything hard in your life that isn’t currently a priority. I see things I want all the time. There are lots of cars out there that I think are really cool but I don’t really value cars so the idea of spending any kind of money on one is anathema. I’d rather spend money on a new tattoo and drive a piece of crap than carry another car payment. So if you haven’t started to prioritize your nutrition, of course trying something new and difficult will be a challenge.

So what’s the solution? It all comes back to values. Start to line your goals up with your values. Start to see why these things are important to your health and longevity and not just your waistline. If you can learn to value eating more chicken breast, it will look much less like an obstacle and more like an opportunity.