Have you started something with great intentions and in a few weeks or less you decide that it’s not working or you need to try something else and drop what you started with little concern?.... This happens frequently in the fitness industry and in life in general this is called “Shiny New Object Syndrome”… Think back to being a child chasing a shiny new toy and after getting it and playing with it for a while you quickly lose interest and start searching for something else that grabs your attention…
Simply put, you’re always looking for something new and continually searching for that feeling of excitement starting something new brings… I think we all do this to an extent in many facets of life but when it comes to health and fitness this is most definitely a massive stumbling block that is responsible for repeated cycles of failure… I’ve had people lose weight, build muscle, and make great progress then suddenly just stop and change their exercise program or nutrition plan!... Conversely, I’ve had clients who haven’t had great change physically but clearly need more time but within 1-2 weeks go searching for that shiny new object!... This behaviour used to confuse me but now because it’s so common, I try and plan for this. An initial consultation gives me a good indication of how likely or how deeply this person will fall victim to shiny new object syndrome!...
One of the biggest stumbling blocks however must be social media and what people see online and hear from friends/family in our communities… Many people are easily swayed by advertising and hearing the latest trend or fad from a friend that fills them with excitement and hope that doing the new plan or exercise will be the answer until two weeks later you’re doing the same thing jumping onto the next workout and nutrition plan probably because you’ve seen a seriously buff guy or gal doing it on social media and you convince yourself this is it!....
I’ve not been immune to this behaviour myself and will always fall victim to varying degrees, but the reality is to attain your fitness goals (or any goals!) you need to accept that there are periods of being outside your comfort zone and not to rely on that feeling of motivation that’s rarely around… This is easier said than done though especially if we have a habit of changing what we keep doing we cannot truly assess progress… We all respond differently and at varying degrees to changes in body composition and fitness that it’s almost impossible to determine what working and what’s not in such a short time…
Two weeks isn’t long enough for any plan, yet this seems to be a common timeframe we give ourselves, if we’re lucky, as many can be every few days!... Instead of focusing attention on the exercise and nutrition program why not change and focus on your behaviour and thought process to be more logical rather than emotional and just keep repeating the program… Here’s a couple of tips that may help with this and remember to succeed you need to become more aware and stop thinking the program you’re on is at fault by giving yourself time to establish change…
Understand & accept you suffer Shiny New Object Syndrome and become more aware of when you become distracted and start looking for something else and what triggers you…
Work on being more patient with yourself and have more trust in the process involved in your current training, nutrition & lifestyle program (adopt a wait & see approach)..
Clearly define your goals and set a realistic timeline with a process to objectively assess outcomes such as changes in body composition and fitness etc…
Learn that new isn’t always better and recognise and change things that trigger you the best you can (social media, email subscriptions, group memberships, newsletters to name a few)…
