Happiness

We’re happy to write about two of our favorite topics in the same blog post, Happiness and weight loss.

Remember, we change by feeling good, by experiencing success. We see a link between happiness and weight loss.

We recently watched Nudgestock festival 2020, a behavioral science conference. It was was held virtually with a phenomenal lineup of speakers.

Among them, Yale professor Laurie Santos, the most popular prof on earth, presented key findings on happiness backed by science.

By the way, her class on the science of well-being on Coursera is a must take.

In her Nudgestock presentation, she focused on 5 key insights on happiness from her popular class.

The key takeaways:

  1. Beware of miswanting, your mind lies to you about what will make you happy
  2. Make time for social connections
  3. Make time for gratitude
  4. Reduce your mind wandering and become more present
  5. Become wealthy in time not money, focus on time affluence

The entire class, the science of well-being, further teaches that happiness is also fostered as we use our strengths, exercise, sleep better, reduce stress. We would add ‘eat better’.

These are all areas we have agency over and that support weight loss as well.

Will losing weight make you happier then?

Or is weight loss the ultimate form of miswanting? You firmly believe losing these nagging pounds will make you happier, only to find out you’re not.

The science is not settled. As we researched this topic, we found this good article presenting some of the scientific results.

Systems over goals

At Habitlauncher, we prefer systems over goals.

Achieving a weight loss goal is phenomenal and can be celebrated.

Building the system that works for you even more so.

Therefore, set up a process you enjoy and that makes you happy along the journey.

Make celebrations part of the way.  

Remember, one changes by feeling good and by feeling success.

In that sense being happy may help you lose weight, even more than losing weight may make you happy.

Build your system for weight loss, check our e-book here.

It’s now also available on Gumroad here.

Not free, but it’s our best e-book.

Overweight is persuasive

Why is obesity increasing? The numbers keep coming in and obesity continues its climb. 

The latest numbers from the CDC are here. In 2017-2018 over 42% of adults in the U.S. had obesity, up from 39.6% in 2015-2016 two years earlier and up from 30.5% in 1999-2000.

In spite of all the efforts, no change in this generational trend.

Some hope the new dietary guidelines may help.

We hope too, but highly doubt it. 

For persuasion, facts do not matter.

As a thought experiment, let’s consider why obesity is so persuasive, winning more adherents as time passes. Why is it seemingly winning a persuasion battle?

Robert Cialdini is a famous expert on influence and persuasion.

In his book, Influence: the psychology of persuasion, he cites six principles of persuasion: Reciprocity, Scarcity, Authority, Liking, Consistency, Social Proof.

Reciprocity works as we do not like to be in debt and owe something. A small gift leads us to reciprocate for example.

Scarcity plays on our fear of missing out. Hurry only 5 copies left in stock.

Authority appeals to our subconscious deference to forms of expertise. Medication administered while wearing a white blouse is more effective.

Liking influences us as we trust, and aim to emulate people we like.

Consistency is our tendency to avoid cognitive dissonance and act in accordance to who we believe to be. Once we commit to something, we seek to be consistent with our commitment and find ways to justify our decisions.

Social proof or consensus, explains we’re more likely to adopt a behavior we see has already been adopted by others around us.

These principles of persuasion influence our behaviors.

They are part of every marketer’s toolkit. Every brand uses them to influence our behaviors.

And as usual with bias, they keep working, even when we know they are at play.

When on a weight loss journey, we need to minimize the forces of influence of the obesogenic environment we live in.

Notice its influence and develop defense strategies to succumb less.

Looking at the list of principles of influence above, two are somewhat under our control and we have influence over. 

Consistency

Once we commit and make a decision we seek ways to justify our actions and stay consistent.

In case of poor habits, say drinking sugary drinks on a regular basis, what does the consistency say about our commitment? What are we seeking to be consistent with?

Find out and change it.

To change, commit to the new habits you want to foster. 

Affirmations such as “I am healthy”, “I drink water”, “I workout” are a form of commitment. 

Implementation intentions such as “when it is Monday lunch time, I hit the gym” are also commitments we make with ourselves.

Commit to health, write it down. Formulate, affirm and visualize the person you are health wise to foster consistent action with these beliefs.

The belief then fosters consistent behaviors which reinforce the belief. 

Whichever comes first (belief or behavior) does not really matter as long as consistency supports a good habit. 

Social proof

The environment around us is a big influence and a source of clues to prompt weight impacting behaviors. Navigate it consciously. 

This obviously includes interactions with other people as regards to food and dieting. If sugary drinks, pastry breaks, etc. surround us, mind the pounds.

New habits

Remove prompts, add friction to behaviors you want less of. 

Add proper prompts and remove friction to make wished behaviors easier. 

Integrate the new habits in your current routines. 

Make it easy.

Easier than that is good too.

Remember, for persuasion, facts do not matter. 

Convenience, sensory cues (smells, packaging), dopamine hits and the principles of persuasion keep us under influence. This is why overweight is so persuasive.

Change requires awareness and concrete strategies. A system made of habits that influence towards health.

To build your system for weight loss that lasts, see our e-book on new habits here. Also available on Gumroad here. It’s not free, but you’ll soon see it’s worth it.

Mindset

For lasting weight loss, a shift in mindset is often useful as “what the mind thinks, the mind proves.” 

The idea is from Robert Anton Wilson but many self help author, starting with James Allen in ‘As a Man Thinketh’ in 1903 already, focus on the importance of thoughts for change.

We recently came across this great story from Mark Manson on “winning the mental battle for for weight loss”. 

A key takeaway: “if we’re going to successfully change our bodies, then we must change how we perceive ourselves and think about ourselves”.

To lose weight during quarantine or after, we like to say it’s not the knowing, it’s the doing.

And in order to do, we need to change what our mind thinks, develop a mindset for weight loss. “Belief creates behaviors” writes Neale Donald Walsch.

The amount of information, fad diets, and laudable initiatives to better inform consumers is limitless. 

Yet the trend has still not shifted, obesity continues its rise. Harvard recently cautioned: “close to half of U.S. population to have obesity by 2030”.

In spite of knowing about all the health benefits associated with weight loss, we still don’t do. 

And the weight keeps piling on.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Habitlauncher’s new habits guide for weight loss is aimed at getting readers to do. 

Part of doing is the change in mindset that needs to happen. 

For that, affirmations and visualization help.

Think yourself healthy, think yourself sporty, affirm it, write it down every morning and you may find yourself proving it to you.

Ralph Waldo Emerson put it best: “once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.”

For weight loss during quarantine, see our guide here, also available on Gumroad here.

Eat. Real. Food.

At Habitlauncher, we view food as information on top of fuel. We believe, feeding proper instructions to the complex machine the body is, is key for successful weight loss. Eat. Real. Food. It helps.

No matter your take on the diet war. Whatever your preferences, improving your diet quality will help you shed the pounds you want to lose.

The best way to do that is to eat real food.

Whenever you can, choose minimally processed ingredients and make your own dish.

We all know that. But as we love to say it’s not the knowing it’s the doing.

Here is the concrete plan we use to make it happen.

Make it stick with new habits.

Here is a short list of habits that will help you improve your diet quality.

– Drink water only

– No sweets in coffee, tea

– Eat unprocessed food based breakfast only

– Pick restaurants with healthy food options.

– If you can’t, pick the healthiest option available, usually a salad.

– Avoid added sugar, refined carbs and veg oil.

– Cook meals at home with minimally processed foods.

– Quality starts at the shop. Shop with intentions, stick to your list.

– Plan your meals, fail to plan is plan to fail.

Some of these habits are hard, we know. Don’t ever beat yourself up. Start easy. Don’t break the chain.

Here is how we concretely improve our diet quality.

We aim for 3 meals, 7 days a week. 

If the meals are good, snacking should rarely happen as we are not too physically active. We’re not long distance cyclist, runner, and have no physical work.

Snacking is a potential sign your diet may need a revamp. When snacking, stick to healthy choices, dried meat, veggies, fruits.  

Breakfast

Come up with 3 different healthy options that use minimally processed food. Nowadays, most things are somewhat processed. You’ll know when it is minimally processed, no added sugars, no refined flour, no added flavors etc…

Find what works for you.

Ours 3 defaults options are:

Plain Greek yogurt with chia seeds and some honey.

Eggs, sometimes with bacon

Chia seed pudding with fruit (blueberry is our fave)

Lunch

If you can, plan the restaurants you will visit during the week. Ensure they have healthy options and cook with high quality oil. Just ask and they will tell you.

If you can’t choose the place, pick the healthiest option. Usually a salad.

On the week-end, cook at home, make it a tradition.

Hard at first but fun when you get into it and kids love to help.

Develop a few dishes you’ll end up being known for. 

Our current favorite are Moroccan lentil soup, Tensuke pork filet, grilled chicken and avocado.

Dinner

To eat real food, whenever you can, cook at home.

It can be a pain, cumbersome but it does not have to be and it brings big benefits.

Make it easy. Find 10min prep recipes that are healthy, real food based and that you love. 

Celebrate the good life

As with any new habits, make it easy, integrate into your routine and celebrate. Meals are perfect occasions to celebrate the good life. 

Our default meals that take 10min or less to prep.

– Salmon with asparagus

– Paprika chicken

– Cheese omelette

– Tomato mozzarella salad

– Garlic steak bites

– Lentils and eggs

– Avocado with Tuna

Add a salad to these and you’re set.

Diet quality starts at the shop. 

Plan your meals, according to your shopping schedule. Make a shopping list, organized by food store sections. 

Just buy the quality ingredients that are on your list, nothing else.

Stick to it and celebrate.

To build your system for weight loss, check our e-book, New Habits for Weight Loss here or available on Gumroad here.

The Pareto Principle

Looking to lose weight effectively? The Pareto Principle might help. Also known as the 80/20 rule, it states that for many events, around 80% of the effect is caused by 20% of the causes. It has been named after Vilfredo Pareto, an economist. He noticed, and wrote in 1896, about the 80/20 percent connection that applies to many economic topics. At the time 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the people for example.

How to lose weight effectively? Use the Pareto Principle to help you. Identify the most impactful habits that may bring 80% of the results with 20% of the effort.

Two must-read books that just came out reminded me of the Pareto principle in relation to weight loss. 

“Eat Like The Animals”

The first book, ‘Eat like the animals‘, is by David Raubenheimer and Stephen J. Simpson, the scientists who coined the “protein leverage hypothesis“. This book takes the reader on a journey of scientific discovery as the authors seek to understand how animals and ultimately humans feed themselves optimally. We learn about the five appetites humans have for protein, carb, fat, calcium and sodium, and that humans seek to satiate protein first. The authors then make a convincing case that obesity could be the consequence of protein dilution in our current diet.

“The Fatburn Fix”

The second book, ‘The Fatburn Fix‘ by Dr. Cate Shanahan, explains how to regain the capacity to burn body fat as fuel. It presents in depth how vegetable oils potentially negatively impact the energy generation within our cells by disrupting our mitochondria. The author then makes a convincing case that obesity could be the consequence of too much vegetable oils in our current diet.

The Pareto Principle

Obesity is a complex issue that can’t be reduced to one cause. I just mentioned two convincing ones above already. However when on a weight loss journey, when working on habits to lose weight, the Pareto Principle is helpful. Have it work for you. If you had to pick the one thing that would bring the most results, what would it be? What are the 20% you can do, that would bring 80% of the results? 

Once you’ve defined your aspiration, think about and list all changes and new habits you need to come closer to your goal. Use the Pareto principle to identify the new habits that would bring the most bang for your effort in the current moment. There is no one size fits all, and the habits with the most impact change over time. At first it might be drink more water, then improve diet quality, then meditate daily, then exercise more, then exercise with more intensity, then…To lose weight effectively, use the Pareto principle, the 80/20 rule, to make weight loss work for you.

To build your system for weight loss, please see our ebook here or on Gumroad here

Start with why

The best reasons to lose weight are the ones you can visualize. When going on a weight loss journey, start with a why. We wrote elsewhere about the importance of smart goals and expectations. While a certain weight by a certain date can certainly be smart, it is important to support your overall weight loss goal with a why. 

All roads lead to Rome, but only if you want to get there.

Ask yourself “Why do you want to lose weight?” Is your or a loved one’s wedding coming up? Is it to improve your health? Your sleep? To relieve joint or back pain? To be able to attend a graduation ceremony? To look good at the beach this summer or just to fit better in your favorite pair of jeans? Mine was simple, I wanted to enjoy many more years of snowboarding with my family. And now my new weight loss related goal is to do pull-ups with decent form.

Define your aspiration

At the beginning of your journey and along the way, take a moment to find your why. Use this reason to define your aspiration, the overall goal you want to achieve, the changes you want to see. Imagine the changes, what choices, in particular food choices, does the new you make. Think about it and visualize it.

Visualization is underrated. 

Once you found your why and used it to define your aspiration, you can start visualizing. Imagine the new you, the changes you want to make, what you do regularly to attain this goal. Imagine yourself performing and enjoying the steps necessary to achieve your aspiration, for example eating healthy or exercising. Engage your senses, sense the smells, sights, colors, sounds, while you visualize your goal or the process to get there. Feel the new you.

Fake it till you make it.

The brain does not distinguish between what is real and imaginary, the same regions are activated during both activities. Be it because of confirmation, commitment or consistency bias, the mind has a way to prove what it thinks. Think yourself healthy, exercising and you may find yourself proving that you are. Make it a new habit.

Whatever your reasons to lose weight, remember the journey is more important than the destination. For weight loss as well. Please check our e-book and 30-day New Habits pack for weight loss, now also available on Gumroad here.

“Emotions create habits”

How to lose weight for good?

We prefer system over goals and habits are an all important component of the system for weight loss. Whether we are conscious of them or not, habits are a key part of what we do.

Habits expert and Professor of Psychology Wendy Wood writes in her excellent book that we spend 43% in habit mode on average. This is close to half of our days. As Aristotle explained “we are, what we repeatedly do”. 

Willpower is overrated, try habits instead

Habits are also crucial because willpower and motivation are overrated as a source of lasting change. Willpower is limited, it drains, and leaks under the pressures and stresses of everyday life.

Willpower is a great resource to get started, to envision what we want to accomplish, to plan the changes one needs to make. To turn the vision into reality however, it is indispensable to get the 43% of the time spent in habit mode working towards one’s goals.

Hence to lose weight for good, new habits or changes to existing habits are an essential part of our four steps process to lose weight. 

Habits as a loop

Many (Dollard & Miller, Duhigg, Clear) explain Habits follow a loop cue – routine – reward. A signal of any type (time, location, sense, emotion, person, action, etc…) stimulates a craving, a routine is executed to get a reward that satisfies the craving.

For example, it is 4 in the afternoon (cue), you feel a lack of energy and the need for an energy boost (craving), so you hit the vending machine (routine) to buy a chocolate bar (reward). It is very important to note that once the habit is formed and the behavior is automatic, the reward becomes useless, the cue suffices to trigger the behavior (4 pm, hit the vending machine).

Habits as a function of motivation, ability and prompt (BJ Fogg)

According to BJ Fogg’s behavior model, a habitual behavior takes place when a prompt, ability and motivation meet. Motivated, easy to do and prompted, the habit will take place.

It is as if habits are unconscious cost benefit analysis. If the cost is low (high motivation, little effort, easy to do) and the initial reward high, the chance of habits happening is improved. If the cost is high (low motivation, big effort, cumbersome, needs planning) and the reward is low or in the future, the behavior will not take place, and a habit will hardly form. 

Start easy

For each new habits you want to introduce, make them as easy as possible. Start with one healthy meal, one push-up, 20 seconds cardio, 3 breaths meditation etc. Ensure the new habits can be done, day in, day out, rain or shine.

Easy means really easy and even easier than that. Also ensure you can always default back to the easy version of the new habit you want. This fosters feelings of success. More reps, longer, faster, healthier will come naturally. Without raising the bar, you can always just come back and do the easy initial habit.  

“Emotions create habits”

The rewards need to be immediate and aligned with the goal you want to pursue. For example, when trying to lose weight, do not reward yourself with an unhealthy snack or cheat days.

An immediate reward you can us is celebration. Congratulate yourself, give yourself a high five. Do this each time you have done the new habit you want to form. As Stanford behavior scientist and habit expert BJ Fogg explains in his outstanding book on habits: “Emotions create habits”.

Habit Stacking

Creating new habits can be done in various ways. The easiest is habit stacking. You start by identifying a habit you already have and enjoy, and you add a behavior to the new habit.

For example, if you want to drink more water and you already regularly drink coffee, add the water routine to the coffee routine. When I drink coffee, I drink a glass of water. The existing habit is used here as a cue to drink more water.

The existing habit can also serve as a reward for a new habit. For example, once I hit the gym and am done with my cardio, I will hit the coffee shop for a nice rewarding coffee.

Habit Swapping

A second way to create a new habit is to replace the routine in an existing habit. For example, when you are stressed or excited about something, you go to the vending machine and buy a chocolate bar to calm down.

When the cue happens, replace the routine used to get the reward with a more beneficial one. The new habit then becomes, when you are stressed or excited about something, you go to a quiet place and take 3 deep breaths to relax. 

Add friction to poor habits

Adding new habits is generally easier than untangling poor ones.

You can potentially improve existing habits by changing the reward. In the above example, if eating something soothes you, you could replace the habitual chocolate bar with a fruit or nuts.

As we saw however, once a habit is formed, the reward becomes useless. Altering the reward may not be as useful as adding friction to poor habits or working on their cues.

Cues / prompts / triggers

Time, location, emotions, people, actions, smells, sights, sounds can all serve as prompts. Time and location are common and stable cues to use to form new habits.

For fitness related habits you can use a day and time as cues. For example, when it is Monday lunch, I hit the gym. When I am done with dinner, I go for a walk. When I shop at Walmart, I buy unprocessed whole foods only.

Context / Environment

Change the cues by altering the environment.

The environment we live in is a limitless source of cues for many of our habits. Aligning the part of the environment we can control with our wished behaviors is necessary.

For example, to improve the health quality of snacks, one can ensure that only fruits are visible and easy to reach. 

Emotions beats repetitions

Initially, all changes require conscious decisions and planning. Repetition and more importantly emotions forge them into habits.

How many reps? It depends, it varies. Some habits easily stick, some take much longer. Studies showed a new food related habit formed in 50 to 66 days. For regular fitness, it took longer, around 90 days. The great thing about the four pillars of weight management (diet, exercise, sleep, stress) is that they offer multiple opportunities, each and every day, to apply new habits. The reps pile in quickly. 

“Emotions create habits”

Habit expert BJ Fogg suggests emotions are even more important than repetitions. As he explains “one changes by feeling good” and he advises celebrating after each new habit. This creates positive emotions that help wire the brain with the new habit.

With positive emotional associations, new habits can form very rapidly.

Habit Training

To build new habits, train them. Rehearse the entire new sequence (prompt, routine, celebration) a few times in a row. For food or drink related habit, just mimic the new habit.

Habit Tracking

Tracking appears to be beneficial overall, with many studies showing a correlation between tracking and results. Remember correlation is not causation though. Tracking can serve as an immediate reward as well. Once done with a habit, congratulate yourself, add a check mark to the done list and don’t break the streak. 

Don’t break the chain

When starting, it is useful to write the new habits down and keep a log. See how the streaks are going and adjust accordingly.

Never ever beat yourself up for not keeping the streak going. If a one off, it does not matter. If many and regular holes in the streak, just adjust the habit and make it easier.

For example, you want to eat more mindfully, evaluating your appetite at each meal but this habit will not stick and you just do not do it. Make it easier, and easier. Start with breakfast only and stack it to an existing morning routine. When I drink my first coffee, I assess my appetite. Assess and adjust.

With enough repetition, a new easy habit will eventually form, that you can use to achieve more goals.

At Habitlauncher.com, working on habits, we help you build a system to reach your goals. To lose weight for good, see our e-book here.

For this year’s resolutions, think process over outcomes, system over goals

Habits to lose weight start with a goal. New resolutions season is upon us. Most popular among these: get in shape, exercise more, lose weight, reduce stress. These are classics and pillars of a healthy weight. Making a resolution is good as it orients us in the right direction. Recent research also confirms that writing down goals increases the chance of achieving them. 

Process over outcomes

However, having a goal alone will still not get you there. The process, made of your habits, will. Also, too much focus on goals is not always fun. As long as the goal is not reached, a lack of success can be discouraging and once the goal is achieved, a sense of purpose can disappear. 

System over goals

Focusing on the process, thinking in terms of system, changes that. When you do something regularly to move you in the right direction (for example eat healthy, exercise, meditate) you are applying your system. Each time you do that, you win, you are making progress and succeeding. Progress and success then contribute to motivation. Adding something to the done list on a regular basis also feels great. And what you do initially, the first steps you take, can be as small and easy as eating an apple, taking a short walk or a few deep breaths.

“We are what we repeatedly do”

Having a goal is not enough. Results come from actions, from behaviors we implement daily, and these habits form the system to reach goals. As Aristotle famously said “we are what we repeatedly do”.

Visualization

Once you have a resolution in mind, take a minute to reflect on what would change when you achieve it. What difference will it make to you? What will improve? How do you feel? Take a moment to bring to life how achieving the resolution feels.

Implementation intention

Finally, for this year’s resolutions, let us formulate them specifically, detailing action, time and location. For example, get in shape, exercise more, become: If it is Monday or Wednesday then I will hit the gym in downtown Geneva over lunch. Formulating “if then plans”, called implementation intentions, is shown to help weight loss and healthy eating. Such plans build associations between cues (in this case a time of day) and a behavior (working out). They make us aware of logistical issues (block calendar, prepare gym bag, plan lunch afterwards). They are commitments and commitments are knowingly hard to break. 

Once formulated, share your resolutions with supportive friends. Use an accountability partner to further increase your odds of reaching your goals in 2020 and beyond. To help you lose weight check our e-book, New Habits for Weight Loss here or available on Gumroad here. At Habitlauncher.com, working on habits to lose weight, we help you build a system to reach your goals.

The G.I. Joe fallacy – knowing is NOT half the battle.

To change habits, it’s not the knowing, it’s the doing.

In October the OECD released a report informing us that from 2010 to 2016 the obesity rate increased from 21% to 24%. In the countries covered an additional 50 million people are now obese. They also explained that nationwide campaigns and better information could save thousands of life years. Moreover “Economic savings would also be significant, with menu labeling alone saving up to USD$ 13 billion between 2020 and 2050.” More recently Nestlé announced an industry leading push to use Nutri-score in more markets. Nutri-Score is believed to be the most efficient nutrition label in conveying information on the nutritional quality of food. 

“Knowing is not enough, we must apply”

While totally laudable these efforts made me think about the G.I. Joe Fallacy. Unlike what G.I. Joe says, knowing is often not half the battle. Used to describe situations in cognitive science, where knowing about bias still leaves us subject to those same cognitive bias, it seems to also apply to weight management. A simple google search for “Lose weight Geneva” gives you 10 million hits, with information aplenty. However, as Bruce Lee said, quoting Goethe, “Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do”. Or as Laurie R. Santos and Tamar Gendler, who coined the GI Joe fallacy, explain “the lesson in much contemporary research in judgment and decision-making is that knowledge is rarely the central factor controlling our behaviors”. 

You know snacking too much is bad for you, yet still reach for the cookie instead of an apple. You know exercise is good for you, yet the last time you walked to work was weeks ago. To change habits, at habitlauncher.com we help you build a system to reach your weight related goals. 

Now you know, and why not win the weight loss battle with our e-book here or available on Gumroad here.