“The Process of Change”
Ken Dobberpuhl, CPT, MAT
When I first became a fitness professional I thought that what I really needed to be successful and help people was learning every exercise I could find and put it in my “tool box.” What I didn’t realize is that when you peel the onion back most people simply want to look and feel better. Even for athletes where performance is a high priority part of their underlying motivation is the empowerment they feel when they compete.
The catalyst that starts people moving in a different direction is CHANGE. Most athletes intuitively know that if they just do the same training over and over they will only develop so far. Fortunately most athletes/coaches have a plan for cycling their training by undulating periods of higher volume and intensity to bring about the adaptive changes in preparation for a future event. Unfortunately the same can not be said for most of the general public. People are generally motivated in two ways either toward a positive outcome (wedding/class reunion) or away from a negative consequence (disease). For example, everyone “knows” that supportive nutrition and exercise are the solution for many of society’s health issues.
Why then don’t more people choose this less expensive more efficient method of taking control of their health? I believe it’s a lack of confidence fueled by what they perceive as past “failures.” Athletes constantly measure their progress by time, distance or points scored.
Most people that want to lose weight for example have tried several “diets” but they either used flawed technology and/or they lacked the commitment to follow through with a program because they weren’t truly ready.
Whether discussing diet or exercise success is proportional to the degree of change you are willing to commit to and change needs to be made in
small bites. For example, if you want to swim faster, the answer is not swimming more meters, it’s swimming more QUALITY meters.
So time is better spent on improving your stroke mechanics and body position. For weight loss it often means creating some new strategies like preparing meals in advance for the week or taking your lunch to work instead of eating out.
One litmus test I use to determine if change I’m making will be successful is simply ask “Is this a sustainable choice?” If your choice is something you can continue to do long term you are probably on the right track. Also, remember that the process of change is about consistently making adjustments to your plan, it’s not about perfection, it’s just doing the best you can each day.
Chances are if you are reading this, you are probably engaged in the process of change on a regular basis. If you have a family member or friend that is struggling to make a change perhaps recognizing the following stages of “readiness to change” will help. We can only truly embrace change when we are at the point of “preparation” or the “I will do it” stage. This means that a person has sufficient reason or belief to put ACTION behind their thoughts and words. Be patient, it can take months before some people are ready. Try to help them identify something positive to work toward and visualize how they will feel when then attain it.
The Stages of Change are as follows:
| 1. | Pre-Contemplation | I Can’t Do It! |
| 2. | Contemplation | I May Do It! |
| 3.*** | Preparation | I Will Do It! |
| 4. | Action | I AM DOING IT! |
| 5. | Maintenance | I’M STILL DOING IT! |
Finally one of my favorite quotes about change:
“CHANGE OCCURES WHEN THE WILL TO CHANGE IS GREATER THAN THE RESISTANCE TO CHANGE”
