How to Stick to Your Diet and Exercise Program: 12 Highly Effective Strategies

These are the most effective and most often used strategies that I use with my clients – and use personally. I hope they help you stick to your diet and exercise program and enjoy the journey!

“How do I stay motivated to stick with it?” is a question I get asked quite often.

Everybody is excited on Day 1. After all, there’s endless potential at the outset of a new program or diet. When everything is cleanly laid out and we’ve not yet hit any hiccups or speed bumps.

But what happens what you’re a month in, 2 months in, and real life does seem to have found a way into to your plan? Life isn’t slowing down to make change easy. Especially if you’re similar to my clients, who are often juggling family life with their careers, their social life and their self-development goals.

When everything seems to be getting in your way – how do you stick to your diet and exercise program? I’ll show you how in this article.

I’ll show you the tried-and-tested strategies my clients use to stick to their diets and keep progressing in the gym for months, if not years, on end.

Ready to see it through to the end? Let’s get started.

What You Shouldn’t Rely On…

Do you want to achieve your fitness goals? Lose the weight (and keep it off)? Build the muscle (and look toned)? Feel healthy and capable and strong?

Then, you need perseverance. And lots of it.

A survey done in 2012 by the American Psychological Association found that 93% of participants had made a resolution to change some aspect of their behavior. Turns out that when asked, will power felt like an important factor in their success. Yet 1 in 4 participants claimed they lacked the will power necessary!

Even though they recognized the benefits of making a healthy change.

Even though they felt – physically and mentally – better while pursuing healthier habits.

American Psychological Association 2012

Most people rely on will power to motivate them to keep going. To stick with it. To see it through.

But that’s not actually what you need to stick to your diet and exercise program.

What you need is perseverance.

Why?

Why is Perseverance Important?

Perseverance: continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition; the ability to keep going, to stay focused, and to maintain a positive attitude in the face of adversity.

See, perseverance is a decision. It is something that you can choose. You have control over whether or not you persevere.

Will power, on the other hand, like motivation, is uncontrollable. It is something that happens to you. No control.

Which is why perseverance is so important when it comes to sticking to your diet and your exercise goals. Because there will be challenges. There will be moments when you are tired, stressed out, too busy, too [insert reason]. When will power has deserted you.

And when that happens, what you’re left with is choice.

Making the best choice for your body, your health and your progress isn’t always easy. Which is why you shouldn’t waste any time reading the strategies below…and putting them into action!

12 Highly Effective Strategies to Stick to Your Diet and Exercise Program

The best diets and the best training programs are the kind that are built for longevity. Because results are great – we all want results. But if the results don’t last? Well, that’s not quite as beneficial.

Below, I cover 12 time-tested, science backed, actionable strategies to help you persevere, stay consistent and achieve the results you are looking for.

1 – Set Clear, Achievable Goals

The idea of setting SMART goals is all over the internet (you’ve probably heard it dozens of times). And it works! But guess how many people actually set SMART goals? Almost no one.

That’s because they require some clarity on things that most people aren’t super comfortable getting clear on.

Setting clear, realistic and measurable goals is the first step on the path to fitness success. They provide you with a sense of empowerment and control. But first, they make you feel pretty vulnerable.

Meaningful goals start deep inside of you – where your emotions flit around and stay stuck in perpetuity. These are the kinds of goals that last when faced with challenging moments. That’s key – since you’re here to learn how to stick to your diet and workout program – because there will inevitably be challenges en route.

So, dig deep!

The more heart strings you can pull, the better. Once you’ve uncovered the bigger meaning behind your quest to get fit, or lose weight, or finish the half marathon, you can work back up to surface level and turn your emotion into a SMART goal.

Here’s the step-by-step blueprint:

• Tap into your goals’ fuel source: ask yourself why you want what you want. Then ask again. And again. If you start to get emotional, great! That means you’ve hit on something that is a true, lasting, driving force.
  
  Most people are surprised to find that their why is less about what they look like or what pant size they wear, and more about what they want to be able to do or how they feel. Confidence is a big one. A sense of autonomy is another. The ability to do the hobbies you love with the people you love is another big one. Remember: this should get you feeling all the feels!
  
• Use the SMART goals framework:
  
  Specific – get clear and concise. Instead of “get in shape” >> “strength train 4 days a week”.
  
  Measurable – what metrics will you use to determine your progress? Will you track food? Take progress photos? Count your steps?
  
  Achievable – ambitious goals have a certain excitement to them, but it’s important to keep your sights set on something that is realistically attainable. You might want to play in the NBA, but if you’re a 5’2″ human who’s always played soccer and never basketball…maybe time to reset your dream.
  
  Relevant – how does your goal fit into your values and lifestyle? Aligning what you want for your health with what you want for your life will help you stick with it.
  
  Time-bound – timelines create a sense of urgency which in turn becomes a daily reminder to take action.

2 – Create Behaviors

Goals are great. But action is what brings change. And consistent action is the key to forming healthy habits. Healthy habits, or routine behaviors, are the easiest way to stick to your diet and exercise program and achieve your long-term fitness goals.

To create this kind of consistency, you need to take action. Repeating actions frequently can help develop habits faster because it builds muscle memory and reinforces neural pathways in the brain. The more often you can take a specific action, the faster it becomes a part of your day-to-day routine: a habitual behavior.

The best way to start creating new habits is to start small. Pick 1-2 new actions to focus on at any given time.

For example:

• Drink 8-10 cups of water every day
• Spend 30-45 minutes exercising daily
• Take a 5 minute walking break every hour at work

At first, you might find you have to schedule these activities and actions like appointments. You should feel yourself starting to make room for them naturally as the week goes on.

3 – Plan (and Prep) Ahead

Choosing the healthy option is much easier when it’s sitting there in front of you.

There are several options to planning and prepping yourself for success and I recommend experimenting to see what works best for you:

• Meal planning
• Meal prepping
• Meal service
• Start a crockpot dinner in the morning
• Sign up for a workout class
• Get on a schedule with a workout buddy
• Lay out your workout gear the night before

You can see there are tiers of commitment to multiple aspects of a healthy lifestyle.

Some people get excited about the idea of a prep-ahead style plan. Others can’t imagine it. But you don’t know if you don’t try. Trust me, there’s a plan ahead style that can work for you!

4 – Find Exercise That You Enjoy

Want to increase your commitment level? Do something that you enjoy doing.

You’re far more likely to stick with exercise if it feels like fun.

If you like to bike…get on your bike and ride! I have a client who just discovered pickleball and she LOVES it so much that she’s playing twice a week with her husband now. There is no doubt in my mind that you can find something to fall in love with.

Now, she not only has a new means of staying in shape, she also has a new hobby and an opportunity to spend time with her husband!

5 – Keep Track of Your Progress

Tracking your wins – big, small and everything in between – is one of the best ways to stay excited and motivated on your fitness journey. Which is the best way to stay on track!

Using a workout journal to track your workouts will allow you to see how strong you are getting. Grab a notebook to track how you feel. You can use a smart watch or app to track things like, steps, sleep, meals or weight fluctuations. Monitoring these achievements gives you a meaningful way to track progress.

My personal favorite way to keep track of progress is to use progress photos paired with workout journals. I like the ability to see side-by-side photos, to see the day to day gains in strength and ability, and note the obvious change!

For instance, my client Juli has made incredible strength and confidence gains in the gym. Every week she messages me to tell me how much she loves her workouts, and how much stronger she feels now compared to when we started working together. And you can see the physical changes that are happening!

Here’s why I especially love these metrics for Juli: if she was only looking at the scale she’d think “it wasn’t working”. But using different metrics: photos, strength gains, and energy – she’s drastically improved her health and fitness!

6 – Focus on Sustainable “Stepping Stone” Goals

Making gradual adjustments can be incredibly beneficial to long-term progress and the sustainability of healthier habits and results. After all, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and look how long it’s fame and physique (can I use that term here? I think I can), have lasted!

Physical transformation isn’t easy. Most people shoot themselves in the foot by trying to do too much, too fast. They want results ASAP, so they think that if they can pack everything in to a short time frame, the results will come quickly.

The reality is that changing too much at once quickly creates overwhelm and causes burnout. So not only do the results not come quickly, they often don’t come at all.

The trick is to break your big goals – your dream goals – down into what I call Stepping Stone goals. For example, instead of going from 0 workouts and 3,000 steps a week to 6 workouts and 10,000 steps the next week, slowly work your way up to those numbers.

As a result you’re far more likely to enjoy the process and maintain the adjustments until they feel like your normal routine (feeling like it’s your normal routine = no better way to stick to your diet and exercise program).

7 – Ask for Support

There’s a reason fitness classes and online fitness forums are so popular still. They work!

Encouragement and accountability from others can help keep you on track. Humans are social creatures. With the right support and in the right environment, we thrive!

You still need some personal accountability, but building a support system can boost your chances of long-term success tremendously. Granted, not everyone is excited about signing up for a group fitness class. No worries – there are plenty of ways to build a supportive community:

• Share your goal(s) with friends and family and ask for their support when you’re together. Maybe you switch your brunch dates to a walk in the woods. You might even find that some of your friends and family want to join your quest to be healthier!
• Join an online or in-person fitness community.
• Sign up for a class at your local gym.
• Invest in a coach.

There are plenty of opportunities to build a support system!

8 – Focus on What You Can Control; Let the Rest Go

How many hours have you lost beating yourself up over missing yesterday’s workout, or overdoing it at dinner last night? Well, today marks that start of a new era. An era in which you don’t worry about what’s happened in the past, or what hasn’t yet happened in the future. An era in which you focus on the present moment because it’s the only one you have any control over.

Fact is, the present moment is the only moment that you have any control over. If you missed a workout or ate off-plan, don’t dwell on it. Focus on what you can do right now.

How about when you’ve got a great plan in place but something happens and you can’t see it through exactly how you envisioned it? Pivot. Be flexible. Have a Plan B. Being able to adapt is a part of life – and if your goal is to stick to your diet and exercise program long-term, adaptability is going to be important.

9 – Prioritize Recovery

If longevity is the goal, you’re going to need to rest up. Adequate rest and recovery is vital for mental clarity and focus, physical performance and energy, muscle recovery and your ability to stick with it.

Most people think that the workout is the most important part of getting stronger and building more muscle. It’s important – for sure. But you don’t actually get stronger or build muscle during the workout. All of that happens when your body is at rest (and when it has adequate nutrition and energy intake).

This infographic from The Wellness Corner lays it out simply:

There are plenty of ways to optimize recovery:

• Get 7-9 hours of sleep every night
• Schedule in active rest days
• Stretch or incorporate yoga into your weekly routine
• Go for a leisurely walk
• Practice meditation or breathwork
• Head to the sauna
• Optimize nutrition intake

Sleep is the most important component to optimal daily living and fitness progress. If you aren’t currently sleeping 7-9 hours a night, give that aspect of your routine some serious attention.

After that, incorporate recovery strategies that feel right for your life and your needs.

*This may seem like the least exciting part of the strategy, but when it comes to learning how to stick to your diet and exercise routine, you have to think long-term. The Energizer bunny is cute, but he ain’t real!

10 – Practice Mindful Eating

Mindful eating – aka building awareness – is a great way to make healthier choices and avoid overeating without feeling overly restricted.

Before you go off Googling “mindful eating tactics”, let me tell you exactly what I mean here. There are some very specific mindful eating strategies that I start every client out with simply because I’ve seen – time and again – how much of a difference they can make. Before we cut a single calorie. Before we add a single gram of protein.

Here they are:

1. Slow down and savor your meals.
2. Honor your hunger/fullness cues.
3. Learn to differentiate between hunger and cravings.
4. Update your vocabulary around food: there is no such thing as universally good or bad food.

The more you can tune in to your physiological signals and emotions when it comes to food and eating, the easier it becomes to recognize the difference between a need and a want. The more often you practice mindfulness, the more empowered you feel – the more capable you are of making conscious food decisions that respect your health and fitness goals.

11 – Create an Environment that is Aligned with Your Goals

This is a fitness hack that most people don’t even think about – but you should! When trying to improve your habits and health to stick to your diet and exercise program long term, it’s so important to align your environment with what you want and need. Otherwise, you’re battling on ground that is highly familiar to your old habits which makes it harder to change.

Create an environment that fully supports the “new you” that you’re in the process of becoming. Do a kitchen makeover to purge the processed snacks and trigger foods that are easy to mindlessly consume. Swap bowls of candy for bowls of fruit. Make healthy easy!

>> Grab my Kitchen Makeover Guide and Checklist to make this process as simple as possible!

Keep in mind that your environment isn’t just the place in which you exist. It’s the atmosphere, the people who surround you and the places you routinely go. This might mean conversations with friends asking them to support you when ya’ll meet for happy hour. It might mean enlisting your S.O. or kids to get involved in cooking so that you have a bit more time to fit in workouts or walks.

This is about setting yourself up for success before you need the help!

12 – Celebrate the Journey, Not Just the End Goal

If you really want to stick with your diet and exercise program for the long haul, you’ve got to start recognizing the benefits of every step of the journey, not just that final step across the finish line. It might take you months, or even years to reach your ultimate fitness goals. But there’s so much to celebrate along the way – and those smaller wins mean a lot in how motivated you feel to keep going!

In Fully Fit, we’re always celebrating the journey. When a client hits a PR in weight lifted – we celebrate! 100 workouts in the books? HUGE win. 15 days in a row of consistently checking of a wellness focus? Fireworks.

These are the things that add up to massive transformation. They deserve to be celebrated!

“Acknowledge all of your small victories. They will eventually add up to something great.”

― Kara Goucher

These methods are all about making your nutrition and exercise routine something you can stick with for the long haul, no matter how busy life gets.

FAQ About How to Stick to Your Diet and Exercise Program:

What if I’ve tried (and failed) before?

The only failure is to not try again. And you’re here, learning how to succeed, so I believe you have it in you to stick with it! Don’t think of past “unfulfilled” attempts as failures. Think of them as learning opportunities. You know more now. You have more tools. You know to ask for support. I always tell my clients that what happened before and what will happen in the future is of no concern to what we can do today. Focus on what you can do today, right now, and that’s what matters.

What if I’m brand new to all of this?

What a great place to start from! I believe as a coach that while my job is to provide you with the steps, the plan and the structure to build the body and lifestyle you want, it is my passion to educate you so that you can do this on your own at some point. After all, very few people invest in a coach because they plan on having one forever! I can guide you through this process so that whether we work together for 3 months, or 6 months or 24 months – you know exactly how to keep the wins going.

I wrote an article on how to get started a few weeks ago. You can read that here!

I’m super busy between work and my personal life. Will that interfere?

It doesn’t have to! In fact, I fully believe in work/life/fitness balance. As a coach, I provide my clients with structure that includes flexibility that will allow them to get results while they travel, or go through work deadlines, or deal with any other schedule challenges they face. I work with individuals who are parents, business owners, and traveling professionals, caretakers, social butterflies…

Regardless of your lifestyle, your goals aren’t going anywhere. You can wait for life to calm down and end up never getting started. Or you can find strategies to take control, be flexible and create the life and physique you want – even amidst the crazy!