Want to be more consistent? Do this.

I can’t tell you how many clients I’ve heard say: ”If only I could be more consistent…” with a deep, wistful sigh. 

I get it. Consistency seems to be the holy grail in getting us to our goals, or it’s what we’re told anyway. 

However, many of us think that consistency is simply a quality that we have or don’t – much like the overrated willpower. 

We love to think that consistency is just out of reach, and if we aren’t consistent, we just need to work harder.

What we don’t learn is that consistency is a muscle that we build. 

This is where our minimum baseline comes in. Habits are not built by having motivation and confidence before you start —- although I’ve spent plenty of time waiting on motivation in my life!

Habits are built by taking consistent action. And then doing it again. And again.

If we want to build sustainable habits, showing ourselves that something works for us matters.

A minimum baseline is committing to a minimum, doable action for a week. At the end of the week, you assess and tweak where you need to. 

When I started my weight loss journey nearly five years ago, I had joints that hurt a lot and I belonged to a gym. But I was not a consistent exerciser at all.

I started by walking 10 minutes twice a week when I walked my kids to school. I went to the gym once a week and rode the recumbent bike for 20 minutes and added a few circuit weights. After a couple of months, I added more.

And I made sure to celebrate my wins along the way. 

Sure, your brain will say all kinds of crap to you like, “This isn’t enough…how is this going to make a difference?” 

And when you hear those old thoughts, you remind your inner mean girl that this is about building the habit of consistency – learning to do what you say you will. 

Your minimum baseline is what you can do easily – even during your busiest weeks. The result you’re creating is a habit, and not the number of calories burned. 

Five years later, my minimum baseline for exercise is 3 times a week, 30 minutes. I often exceed that amount, but it’s such a doable amount for me that I never feel defeated. 

Part of this tool is choosing something that you CAN do today. Then you do it, and slowly, we SHOW ourselves that we can trust ourselves to take care of ourselves in this way each week. 

Our habits get built up. We start slow, we take consistent action, and build up steam. 

Today, I have a baseline for exercise, meal planning, water – all habits that support my health.

I know it’s tempting to want to pick a minimum baseline for all. the. things. 

I suggest choosing one thing for the next month and to get good at it. 

And if you want some help in designing doable habits to support your goals, let’s chat.