Photo by: Clark Tibbs

What is Procrastination?

Procrastination is a behavior where you delay or postpone something that needs to be done.

Procrastination is truly irrational. In particular, you know that you would be better off if you didn’t delay completing the task at hand, yet still, you put it off.

For example, when Heather and I began trying to establish better eating habits, we would buy a bunch of healthy groceries but not cook anything!

Instead, we would hit up the drive-thru for breakfast, go out for lunch, and order pizza for dinner. We would end up putting off food prep for so long that our groceries would expire! Why?!

Why do we procrastinate?

Humans are pre-conditioned for instant gratification. In general, we tend to choose pleasurable paths of least resistance rather than focusing on long-term goals that would result in more fulfillment.

Our ancestors weren’t as concerned with long-term planning, personal control, and accountability. They were more focused on impulsively reacting to stay alive rather than eating a balanced diet and dropping a few pant sizes!

In our case - we knew we were wasting time, money, and food by eating out. But we kept choosing the easy options that delivered immediate gratification. Thankfully, we have found many ways to overcome habitual procrastination. 

Let’s explore some ways to beat procrastination and begin living a healthier lifestyle today.

10 Simple Tricks to Avoid Procrastination

1. Establish “Why” A Healthy Lifestyle Is Important

The best way to start eating healthy and exercising is to establish why you are doing it in the first place.

Yes, you would probably like to lose some weight. However, that’s not enough.

You need to understand WHY you want to lose weight.

Grab a notebook or note-taking app and begin listing the real reasons you want to start eating better and working out. These reasons will be your real motivation to push through when challenges arise.

Review your list when times get tough and the desire to procrastinate will fade as quickly as it arrived. 

2. Create Some Deadlines for Yourself

Parkinson's law is the adage that says work will expand to fill the time allotted for completion.

Don’t give yourself infinite time to accomplish something. Life is short! Get busy living!

Write down a few things you can do by the end of the week that will move you closer to a healthier lifestyle.

Maybe you could find a healthy recipe to try this weekend or complete a workout to kickstart a new routine.

Setting due dates for goals you want to accomplish is an excellent way to avoid procrastination.

3. Focus on the Correct Steps

Make sure you’re focusing on the proper steps to accomplish your goals.

It’s not going to do any good to eat healthy meals if you burn out from not eating enough calories to fuel your body.

Conversely, it’s not going to do any good to work out several times per week if you continue binge eating patterns. 

You have to focus on the steps necessary to achieve the goals you want.

A great way to figure out if what you’re doing will work is to research the best practices of what has worked for other people.

You must dedicate time to plan and execute actions that move you toward your goals. 

4. Break Big Tasks Into Smaller Ones

It’s easy to think something will be more difficult than it actually is - like doing some meal prep or completing a workout.

We end up procrastinating as more convenient options arise. But a little bit of consistent effort will go a long way toward achieving your goals!

Sometimes it helps to break seemingly difficult tasks into smaller chunks that don’t feel so overwhelming. 

If you need to get up early to prepare meals for the day - make a list of small tasks to complete. Start the list with something you enjoy, like brewing a fresh pot of coffee or turning on some swing music.

When your alarm goes off in the morning, take some deep breaths and remember all the things you have to be grateful for in your life. Then think about the small, enjoyable task at the top of your list.

Simply getting off to a positive start will make the rest of your day fall right into place.

5. Eliminate Distractions

An excellent way to avoid procrastination is to get rid of things that compete for your attention.

For example, if you know that you need to make a healthy dinner tonight, don’t spend the evening on the couch with the T.V. playing and your smartphone in hand.

You will have to remove less-productive activities from your everyday routines to make room for new, healthy habits.

Excessive screen time, adult beverages, and other distractions will have to take a backseat to your new healthy lifestyle.

Jot down a few things that may be holding you back and start working them out of your life.

6. Use Timed Intervals For Healthy Tasks

Whenever you try to throw something together last-minute, it usually doesn’t work out well.

"Winging it" sets the stage for massive procrastination.

When you take the time to plan - it makes things easier to execute. If you don't plan - you will continue finding it very difficult to accomplish your goals.

A great way to hold yourself accountable is to work at timed intervals.

For example, set a 45-minute timer and work on something that moves you toward your goal. Research some healthy meals, complete some food prep, or complete a workout.

Thinking of your day in 30-60 minute chunks will help you prioritize what's important to you. And you'll probably realize that you have a lot more time than you thought. Give it a try today!

7. Don’t Work Where You Relax

When you need to accomplish something productive, separate yourself from places where you usually relax.

For example - if I need to write, research, or work on my websites - you won’t find me hanging out on the couch. Why? Because that's where I sit when it’s time to relax and unwind after a long day.

When I'm working, I prefer to be at my desk - in another room - in silence or listening to focus music.

Sometimes I work at the kitchen table, which is only a short distance from the couch. But just that little bit of separation from the relaxation zone is enough to keep me in a productive mindset.

8. Turn Healthy Tasks Into Routines

To be ultra-productive, try transforming tasks you need to complete into a repeatable routine.

For example, we cook most of our meals at home and do a fair amount of meal prep every week. At this point, we have many routines down to a science.

We know what we’re responsible for and how to effectively complete our assignments. There is no guesswork.

This didn’t come overnight, though. It takes a lot of practice, focus, and repetition to develop solid routines.

Plus, even after you have an air-tight regimen in place, something will inevitably come up that unravels your plans from time to time.

Therefore, you also have to build a certain amount of flexibility and backup arrangements into your routines.

Try paying attention to the process you go through to prepare one healthy meal. Then take a step back and ask yourself how you could make the process go smoother or faster next time.

Also, think about the most obvious obstacles that may arise and what you will do. It's better to have a rational plan in place now than to be caught off guard later and get upset.

Little micro-improvements will turn into fully automated success patterns with time, attention, and practice. And when things arise that are out of your control - you'll shrug them off and keep moving forward.

9. Create the Right Energy for Health

There are several ways to create the right energy to avoid procrastination. If you need to work on some critical tasks, crank up the lighting. Brighter lights will help you focus more. 

Need some tunes? Try listening to some focus music playlists, epic movie soundtracks, or classical music. Non-lyrical music is less distracting and will make you feel pumped, productive, and in the zone. 

Many people are working from home right now and spending a lot of time in their comfies. Whether you’re working from home or not, get up and get dressed!

For example, even if I’ve planned a day off from work and exercise, I still throw on my workout clothes and shoes first thing in the morning.

Just being dressed and ready to go lets my mind know I’m going to accomplish something today.

Get up and get dressed for success! Comfies are for after dinner.

10. Visualize Success

Sometimes there’s just no way around it. You will not feel like cooking, working out, or whatever the healthy thing is you know you need to do.

The best way to get over this little speedbump is to imagine yourself completing the challenge in your mind first.

Play a short mental movie of you getting up and knocking out what you know needs to be done.

Even if you don't enjoy the mental rehearsal the first time through - just let the clip run a few times through with some small tweaks and positive vibes.

You will quickly realize that it’s not such a big deal and that your long-term goals are totally worth the short-term effort.

Then stop thinking and act!

Final Thoughts

We all experience moments in life where things feel a bit heavy and procrastination seems gratifying.

However, putting things off never makes you feel better - whereas living a healthy lifestyle always results in no regrets.

The next time you feel a twinge telling you that "future you” will take care of something later - use one of these ten simple tricks to get your head in the game.

After all, "future you" isn't actually real.

Life is always continuously unfolding right now - at this exact moment.

1. Establish a “Why”
2. Create Some Deadlines
3. Focus on the Correct Steps
4. Break Big Tasks Into Smaller Ones
5. Eliminate Distractions
6. Use Timed Intervals
7. Don’t Work Where You Relax
8. Turn Healthy Tasks Into Routines
9. Create the Right Energy
10. Visualize Success