Hardwired for Shortcuts
Most of our decisions share a common thread: we’re wired to chase big rewards quickly, at minimal effort. We buy new gadgets, downloads apps promising instant savings and returns, or tidy up cluttered spaces because the rewards are immediate and the effort required is minimal.
But when it comes to health and fitness, the rules suddenly shift. Behaviour change here is uniquely tough - not because we’re lazy or lack discipline necessarily - but because the whole value equation is flipped upside down.
The Value Equation Reversed
Serial Entrepreneur, Alex Hormozi, describes value as a balance between four factors:
Dream outcome (eg. the reward)
Likelihood of success
Time delay before the reward
Effort and sacrifice required
In most attractive decisions, value feels high: a potential big outcome, high probability of achievement or success, minimal time delay, and little effort on the part of the consumer. But health and fitness behaviours invert this principle almost in it’s entirety:
High dream outcome (potential for big changes to health, fitness, aesthetics, and confidence)
Low perceived likelihood of success (previous failed attempts make us doubt what we’re capable of achieving with each new attempt)
Long time delay (results are rarely visible quickly outside of extreme interventions)
High effort and discomfort (workouts are tiring, require effort and can leave you sore, and dietary discipline can take it’s toll over time)
Even though the long-term payoff of getting healthy is undoubtably important, the immediate perceived value can feel low. This creates resistance and a sense of “this isn’t worth it,” especially when compared to the instant comforts we’re used to.
Why Health Is Harder Than Other Behaviour Changes
Consider typical changes people successfully make - using budgeting apps, doing digital declutters, or setting up automated savings:
One-time (or low friction): You set it and forget it.
Quick wins and feedback: You can sense and see the immediate improvement
Little identity shift is required: You’re essentially the same person, just better organised.
But fitness and nutrition?
Continuous effort: You don’t have the ability to “set and forget” your workouts or meals, a constant recommitment is needed week-on-week.
Ongoing sacrifices: You’ll likely need to take in less indulgent food, fewer relaxed evenings, possibly earlier bedtimes.
Identity restructuring: You become “someone who exercises,” “someone who eats well.” It’s often deeper and more profound.
Unique Frictions of Health and Fitness
There are multiple layers making health and fitness change uniquely tricky:
Hedonic Trade-Off
You trade enjoyable, comfortable habits (sofa evenings, takeaway meals) for tougher, less instantly rewarding ones (gym sessions, meal preparation).
2. Long Time Horizons
If the goal is not just to “get in shape” as a one-off, but to maintain your newly acquire health and fitness across the lifespan, results take months, not days. Visible progress is likely to be slow, making it easy to lose motivation once the initial burst of novelty subsides.
3. Weak Immediate Feedback Loop
You sweat, struggle, and feel deprived to the food items that may have offered you council previously - but you often don’t see immediate returns on the scale or in the mirror.
4. Identity Disruption
To truly sustain change, you likely will require some type of movement towards a different version of yourself depending on the starting conditions. “I don’t exercise”shifts into “I’m someone who prioritises exercise,” and that deep identity shift can feel uncomfortable or unfamiliar to both you, your family, and those around you.
Why We Chase Shortcuts
This friction inevitably pushes us towards shortcuts and miracle solutions. Detox teas, diet or weight-loss pills, expensive equipment promising effortless transformation - they all exploit our natural preference for ease and speed (back to the value equation…).
We chase shortcuts because we’re wired to find easy, instant solutions, and marketing companies are fully aware of this. The promise of immediate payoff, low effort, and minimal discomfort is hugely appealing - yet almost always leads to disappointment and repeated cycles of trying and failing.
How to Make It Stick (Reframing the Game)
If health and behaviour change is uniquely challenging, the solution is to re-engineer how you approach it:
Shorten the Feedback Loop
Don’t just rely on long-term outcomes like weight loss or visible changes in muscle mass. Instead, track short term wins:
Improved sleep quality and quantity
Increased perceived energy levels
Greater mood and stress management
Immediate post-workout satisfaction
Seeing quick, tangible payoffs increases motivation and reinforces the degree of consistency needed for long-term change.
2. Shift to Indentity-Focused Goals
Instead of fixating only on the quantitative outcomes (“lose 10 kilos”), embrace identity=based goals:
“I’m someone who’s committed to working out three times per week”
“I’m someone who makes health choices related to my food intake daily”
Your identity drives consistent actions far more powerfully than external targets can.
3. Actively Reduce Friction
Make the desired behaviour as easy as possible:
Pre-pack gym clothes the night before
Meal prep where possible to remove daily food decisions
Hire a coach or join a community for built-in accountability
When friction is low, sticking to new habits become that much more simpler.
4. Boost Perceived Likelihood of Success
Celebrate small, consistent wins along the way. Prove to yourself repeatedly that you can do it, which builds confidence and momentum. Surround yourself with your own social proof to reinforce belief in your potential. If you can achieve your targets for a day, the goal becomes to stack those days into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years.
5. Acknowledge the Difficulty, but Embrace It
Don’t sugarcoat the challenge - accept and acknowledge it. Recognise that while health and fitness behaviours don’t often come easy to us all, the payoff is likely multiple folds better than the alternative. This honest framing prepares you mentally for setbacks (which will inevitably occur…) and builds resiliency into your armour.
Final Thoughts
Health and fitness behaviours are uniquely challenging because they reverse the value equation we’re naturally drawn to. Immediate rewards are rare, effort is consistently high, and identity shifts are profound. But by shortening your feedback loops, embracing an identity shift, actively reducing friction, celebrating small wins, and accepting the inherent difficulty, you can transform these daunting changes into sustainable habits.
It’s never easy. But it’s always worth it.