How the "I'll Start Monday" Mindset Is Costing Your Weight Loss Progress

Motivation is not sustainable.

You go to sleep energised to start your workout tomorrow morning.

The alarm rings.

You snooze.

It's cold outside.

The bed is super warm.

It's a weekend.

And you're tired from working all week.

You skip your workout.

You say:

"I'll start Monday."

Fair enough.

The Never-Ending Monday Loop

But when Monday comes around, you have to wake up early to prepare the kids before you rush to the stage to beat the traffic to your job.

Or to open your business early.

So again, you skip your workout.

Tuesday?

Well, as much as it feels different from Monday, as we mentally convince ourselves that Monday is terrible, our Tuesday routine is exactly the same.

So guess what?

That's right.

We tell ourselves:

"I'll start Monday."

And so goes Wednesday.

Thursday.

Friday.

And the weekend, which starts on Friday, you know.

Those days spent doing whatever damage we can do to our health and weight loss because next week is going to be different.

We're going to lock in.

Right?

Well, what's going to stop this coming Monday from being like last Monday?

Or, even sadder, especially if you're one to start a new week with a hangover or needing to restart your brain for work after a weekend of slacking.

And so the cycle repeats itself every other week.

And we don't seem to see what's happening.

And sometimes.

Years pass.

Even decades.

Of us starting tomorrow.

Of us starting "on Monday."

Or saying "I'll start next month" just because it's the middle of the month and we've already written off the remaining two weeks.

"Next year."

The Trap of the Extremes

So why don't we instead learn from this and adopt a more practical approach to whatever health, weight loss or wellness goals we may have?

No matter how motivated you are, you are not going to wake up every single day, get on the floor for exercises of up to 30 minutes, every single day, on top of skipping breakfast, avoiding all forms of sugar and carbohydrates, drinking only water, and suddenly becoming a completely different person overnight.

It is bound to fail.

You might do it for a day or two.

Maybe even a few weeks.

But when you mess up, the fear you will have for dieting or trying to lose weight again will lock you from all the doors and paths that would have actually gotten you to that goal better and in a healthier, more natural and sustainable way.

Because your mind now associates anything to do with dieting or exercise with the one you earlier failed.

And it automatically starts believing that anything else that sounds simpler can't possibly work.

And now you are stuck in limbo.

Believing that you have "tried everything."

Rushing to shortcuts like pills, so-called miracle superfoods, injections and surgeries.

Not realising the problem started when you tried to bite off more than you could chew.

And that is how every diet, program or routine sounds to you.

When the Solution Looks Too Simple

And sometimes, the program might actually be perfect.

The routine might be exactly what you need.

Practical.

Realistic.

Sustainable.

Flexible enough to fit into almost any situation.

A way of eating that is practical and realistic enough to maintain even when motivation isn't there.

When you're busy.

When you're travelling. When you're out with family.

When life is simply being life.

But the same mindset that made you bite off more than you could chew in the first place is still sitting there quietly in the background.

And that is what makes it so dangerous.

Because it doesn't announce itself.

It doesn't tell you, "I am about to sabotage your progress."

Instead, it whispers things like:

"Surely it can't be this simple."

"There must be more to it."

"I need something more advanced."

"I need to push harder."

"I need a stricter diet."

"I need to suffer a little more for this to work."

"I'm travelling tomorrow, so I can't possibly continue with the program."

And every time that thought comes up, remember this: You are still eating.

Yes, you're on the road.

Yes, you're in a different town.

Yes, you're in a different country.

But you're still eating.

Healthy people exist in that country too.

They have vegetables.

They have meat.

They have fruit.

They have food portions.

And you can adapt to the ingredients available there with the knowledge you already have.

Consistency Over Perfection

And even when it comes to exercise, you do not need the perfect gym.

The perfect workout clothes.

The perfect equipment.

The perfect ambience.

A simple two-minute workout beside the bed you'll be sleeping on.

The edge of a chair.

A short walk.

Something small enough to keep the habit alive.

Because the goal was never perfection.

The goal was always consistency.

So before the simple and practical approach even gets a chance to prove itself, you start adding things.

Removing things.

Complicating things.

Doing more.

Restricting more.

Expecting more.

Until eventually the very thing that could have worked becomes another unsustainable routine that collapses under its own weight.

And when it does, you conclude that it wasn't working.

When in reality, you never really gave it a chance.

Not because the simple things don't work.

But because you've convinced yourself that the simple things can't possibly work.

And this mindset is far more dangerous than most people realise.

Because it quietly pushes people away from good things.

Not because those things failed.

But because they looked too easy to be effective.

So you keep waiting for the perfect time.

The perfect Monday.

The perfect month.

The perfect year.

When in reality, the thing standing between you and progress may not be the program at all.

And when you do finally start, you can't help but overcomplicate the process because you've already convinced yourself that if it is simple, it can't possibly work.

So you keep adding things.

Changing things.

Restarting things.

Looking for the missing secret.

Wondering why nothing is working.

When the very thing that could have worked was already sitting right in front of you.

It may simply be the belief that progress has to be difficult before it can be real.

Overcoming the Need for Difficulty

So the next time you find yourself trying to complicate the plan, or waiting for that elusive "perfect Monday" to restart...

Pause.

Take a breath.

And do the one simple, easy thing right in front of you instead.

Because as long as you hold onto the idea that health has to feel like a punishment, you will keep running on a hamster wheel of exhausting, short-term routines.

You don't need to suffer to prove your worth.

You just need to allow the simple steps to work.

Because that is how you actually win.

Something for you to think about today.

From your coach and friend, Jordan Sifuna.