Dr. Jade has stated in the past that he isn’t a fan of  “the harsh diets and intense exercise programs out there today.” He has actually been so bold as to say they actually “drive me crazy.”  Why? Because Dr. Jade understands harsh diets and intense exercise programs are nearly impossible to stick to. He hates seeing people beat themselves up for not having the “willpower” or “enough discipline” to stay on the wagon.  

As Senior Coach at Metabolic, I can assure you that no one on the coaching team is a fan of the “one size fits all” approach. No one program is guaranteed to work for everyone, and it doesn’t matter HOW much willpower you have. If you are trying to follow a program that simply isn’t working for you or your metabolism, you’ll likely struggle with consistency. When this happens over and over again (think diet roller coaster), that can be hard on you from a psychological perspective.

Some people think they’re cursed with “zero” willpower, but that’s not true. Everyone has willpower. Your willpower battery may be smaller or larger than other people’s, but that’s not nearly as important for weight management in comparison to learning more about how your metabolism speaks to you.

“You cannot “outwill” your metabolism. If some crazy crash diet is throwing your metabolism out of whack, your metabolism WILL force you to eat or rest.  That may look like “failure” from the outside. But it’s not. If anything, the program failed YOU. Because it failed to optimize your metabolism.” 

~ Dr. Jade Teta

Now, on the other hand, a customized eating and exercise plan designed for YOUR metabolism doesn’t require nearly as much willpower as other “diets” and exercise programs. Your custom, metabolism-first approach won’t require you to white-knuckle your way through extreme hunger and cravings. 

Instead, when you feel your HEC or SHMEC is out of check, you just tweak how you’re eating or moving. In doing so, you don’t get those overwhelming feelings in the first place. That said, there is still SOME discipline required to build good metabolic habits. And that’s where the willpower battery comes in. 

Dr. Jade has a great video on the topic, and I’d encourage you to watch it if you really want to understand why willpower isn’t helpful for weight management. You can find that video here. We hope after watching the linked video, you better understand what drains your battery. 

We would love for you to learn, through time and patience, about how to more easily identify when your battery is drained (without self-blame). We encourage you to build and sustain a lifestyle that allows you to RECHARGE your battery fully, but hopefully you will learn to start recharging when you are at 60-70% full versus approaching the 30 or 40% mark. 

The good news is, there are many  ways to  recharge your battery without tons of time, expense, or even effort. If you want to learn more about how working with a Metabolic Optimization Coach can help you to learn how to be a better metabolic detective, or support you through the process of recharging your battery, we encourage you to read this post. 

We’ve helped countless clients over the years let go of the reliance on willpower to achieve their goals, and we’d love to help you too!

Photo by Somruthai Keawjan on Unsplash