Are you an 'all or nothing' kind of person?

On Sunday I embarked on a bit of a self-experiment. I started the '75 Hard' programme. My coach Ste completed it earlier this year and it inspired me to do it. I've never done anything like it before and I'm interested to see how my journey goes. I'm going to experience different emotions - highs and lows along the way - and I'm intrigued to know what I will learn from it. The 75 Hard has 5 daily critical tasks that must be completed every day for 75 days. If I don't complete every task every day, I have to start back at Day 1. I've failed the programme. Yep, you heard me right - failed! It kind of goes against my general nutrition coaching philosophy, which is about moderation and long-term sustainability. But I feel it's important to step outside of my comfort zone and do something that really challenges me. If I do fail, I won't see myself as a failure but the strategies that I put in place will have failed. I haven't always thought this way. It's taken a long time for me to realise that if it's not perfect I've failed! The F*** it! moment. When it comes to diet and exercise, all or nothing thinking or the 'either I'm perfect or I've failed' mentality can sabotage success towards a desired goal. Feeling like you've failed can lead to a tidal wave of choices that lead you even further away from your long-term goal. Have you ever started a new healthy eating kick and proclaimed to everyone that you're 'absolutely one hundred percent on it!'? Then on the second day you botched your diet, had a 'f*** it moment' and proceeded to binge for the rest of the week? This type of thinking can leave you feeling like you're either 'on' or 'off' with no wiggle room for anything else. This can result in going overboard with your diet and exercise or giving it all up when you make a perceived mistake or can't sustain it. This confirms the 'I'm a failure' mindset and the more times that you go through this process, the more ingrained that mentality becomes. You feel demotivated, frustrated and even more convinced that you can't succeed. The grey area of moderation The good news is that over time, you can change this way of thinking. Rather than seeing things rigidly as 'good' versus 'bad' or 'right' versus 'wrong', it helps to see things along a continuum from better to worse. This displays two seemingly opposite ends of a spectrum, with space between the two. Many people assume that these two ends are the only two options - all or nothing. However, the space between the two options may hold more realistic or moderate options - this is the grey area of moderation. Rather than focussing on trying to do it all perfectly, focus on moving one small notch along the continuum. What is a slightly better choice? To help move you away from an all or nothing mindset and move towards a more empowering thinking about what you want and need for yourself, try the following: Think 'long-term' Training regularly and eating in a way that's sustainable for the long term is ultimately a healthy thing. It reduces the potential guilt that you may feel if you're constantly 'on' or 'off' your fitness or nutrition game. It can also help to move you away from an all or nothing mindset and move towards more empowering thinking about what you want and need for yourself. Take one small change at a time, rather than trying to change everything overnight Most of us can stick to something, even something relatively extreme for a short amount of time. But of course we can't be extreme forever, and nor should we try to be. The number one priority of the human brain is survival and therefore maintaining the status quo. To promote consistent behaviours, we should set small, immediate, daily goals that lead into long-term significant changes. This is also a great way to trick our brain into changing over time! It's important also to recognise that sometimes we will push out of our comfort zone with significant challenges (like the 75 Hard!!). Be compassionate with yourself If you miss your daily goal once, look at why, adjust your strategy if need be and get back on track the next day. If you beat yourself up about missing a day, this will feed into the cycle of negative thinking and self-sabotage. Remember - one day won't derail your plans! Ask 'future-minded' questions Although you'll likely have specific short-term goals, it's also helpful to envision your life, choices and behaviours in the future. Asking future-minded questions can help you to evaluate how your current choices will contribute to your success and lead you to your long-term goal. The following questions can be related to training, nutrition or other lifestyle factors. When asking yourself it can help you get your head into the 'long game' headspace:

• What will the effects of this choice be tomorrow, next week, next year or even years from now?

• Could I keep up what I'm currently doing for the long term? Is what I'm doing sustainable?

• If I consider my long-term goal, does this choice move me closer to it, or further from it?

"Strive for progress not perfection!" I hope this helps you to understand where your own thinking sits and gives you some possible strategies to overcome any obstacles you might face. Remember to reach out for help if you need it, it's much harder trying to tackle things on your own! I'll keep you posted on my progress with the 75 Hard. I'm currently on day 5 and have some serious cravings for chocolate, bagels and toast!! (Not all at once I promise!).

Click HERE for a high protein Beetroot, Feat & Quinoa Salad. Healthy food doesn't need to be bland and boring!

If you like what you've read, please share this post far and wide!

Want these weekly insights straight to your email? Click here to subscribe.

Charlotte