Why 30 Day Challenges Aren't All Bad
30 day challenges are commonly mocked in the fitness industry for being a bad tool for developing sustainable, long-term fitness habits. 30 day challenges encourage short-term thinking, which is unlikely to help with long-term development. However, it’s important to remember that long-term thinking is just a combination of all your periods of short-term thinking - and thus, sometimes, short-term thinking can set the right standard for your future behavior.
Great Expectations Part 2 - The Power of Belief, FMS, and the Fitness Industry
In last week’s post, I covered the way that expectancy effects work, and how powerful they can be. Manipulating expectations can be a powerful way to impact the results of any intervention. In this post I analyze the ways in which these effects can impact our diet and exercise results, and why the fitness industry often intentionally manipulates these effects to its own benefit.
Great Expectations Part 1 - Placebo, Nocebo, and Expectancy Effects
Expectancy effects are positive or negative physiological effects which occur as a result of the expectations that we’ve established for a particular course of action, training routine, method of treatment, pill, etc. Placebo (positive) and nocebo (negative) effects are well documented, and vary in strength according to how strongly we believe a positive or negative effect will occur.
My Perfect Morning Routine (And Why You Shouldn't Care)
Routines are a powerful strategy for automating our habits and enabling us to complete more work. At the same time, I think we’re often too reliant on caring about what celebrities and influencers claim their habits are.
Why First Impressions Matter - In Relationships And In Fitness
First impressions initially seem like they shouldn’t be important, but the reality is that they’re a crucial make-it-or-break-it moment for interpersonal relationships. Likewise, when learning a new skill or developing a fitness habit, the initial steps are a crucial chance to set yourself up for success (or failure).