Get Active for Life: Issue #14

Motivation vs. Discipline

November 05, 2025

In this issue:

  • The Tortoise, the hare, and your brain

  • Hanna’s story

  • Tip: Temptation bundling

  • and more…

Hello there,

This week, we're tackling a question that sits at the heart of every long-term health journey: What happens when the initial spark of motivation fades? We all start with the best intentions, but life gets in the way, and that early excitement can be hard to maintain. The secret, as we'll explore, isn't about finding endless motivation; it's about building quiet, consistent discipline. We'll look at the science of why "healthy hedonism" beats rigid willpower, how to design your environment for success, and why it takes a lot longer than 21 days to form a habit (and that's okay!). Let's dive in and learn how to keep showing up, even on the days we don't feel like it.

The Tortoise, The Hare, and Your Brain

Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare? The hare, bursting with energy, sprints ahead, confident in his talent. The tortoise, slow and steady, just keeps going - and wins. It’s a simple fable, but a powerful reminder that when it comes to health and fitness, discipline, not motivation, is what lasts.

Motivation is the hare. It’s exciting, emotional and full of promise - the New Year’s resolution energy that gets us buying new runners and joining gyms. But like any feeling, it fades. The first busy week or rainy day, and it’s gone.

Discipline is the tortoise. It’s the quiet act of showing up when you’d rather not, taking the stairs, or going for that walk anyway. It’s not about feeling inspired; it’s about having a system. Research from Yale’s School of Management shows we stick with habits when we find small moments of enjoyment, the “fun factor”, and discipline makes sure we keep turning up long enough to find them.

Behavioural scientists call this “healthy hedonism”: finding pleasure in the process rather than relying on grit alone. When willpower fails, discipline carries us through. The most consistent people don’t have more willpower; they need less. They set up their environment to make good choices easy - laying out gym clothes the night before, scheduling walks with friends, removing friction.

And habits take time. A 2024 meta-analysis showed it usually takes two to five months for new behaviours to stick, not 21 days. That’s freeing. It means we can relax, be patient, and let steady practice do its work.

So when motivation disappears, and it will, don’t see it as failure. See it as your cue for the tortoise to take over. Build systems, enjoy small wins, and keep plodding forward. That’s how we win the long race.

🕺 Interesting People

Hanna’s Story

"From yo-yo dieting disasters to sustainable 10kg weight loss, here's the honest truth about what actually works, and what doesn't."

Today we are sharing a great personal story from Hanna Kim.

If you've ever started a diet on Monday and given up by Wednesday, this video is for you. After years of failed attempts, unrealistic expectations, and an unhealthy relationship with food and exercise, Hanna finally cracked the code to sustainable weight loss.

Hanna's honest journey includes:

  • Multiple failed gym memberships and restrictive diet attempts

  • The unhealthy all-or-nothing mindset that kept her stuck

  • The February 2021 mindset shift that changed everything

  • Learning about calorie deficits and flexible eating

  • Discovering that exercise doesn't have to be punishment

The Exercise Game-Changer: Hanna used to think weight loss meant expensive gym memberships and gruelling workouts she hated. Then she discovered something revolutionary: sustainable exercise is about finding movement you actually enjoy. Home workouts, beginner-friendly routines, and the "progress not perfection" mindset completely transformed her relationship with fitness. Turns out, the best exercise is simply the one you'll actually do consistently.

Key Mindset Shifts:

  • Patience over perfection - sustainable change takes time

  • Education over restriction - learning how weight loss actually works

  • Flexibility over rigidity - enjoying treats within balance

  • Movement over punishment - finding exercise you love, not dread

What Hanna Learned:

  • You don't need a gym membership to lose weight

  • Calorie deficit is the foundation, but flexibility is key

  • Going over your budget occasionally won't ruin progress

  • Guilt and shame are more harmful than the food itself

  • The best workout is the one you'll stick with

This isn't about quick fixes or extreme measures. It's about developing a healthy, sustainable relationship with food and exercise that you can maintain for life.

What's your biggest struggle with weight loss?

📝 Health & Wellness News

What we’ve been reading this week

🧘‍♀️ Why Finding Fun in Fitness Beats Willpower

A recent article in Psychology Today argues that "healthy hedonism", finding genuine pleasure in your wellness activities, is a much stronger predictor of long-term success than relying on grit or willpower. The author, a behavioural scientist, suggests that when we frame exercise as a chore, we set ourselves up for failure. Instead, by choosing activities we actually enjoy, we turn wellness into something we get to do, not something we have to do, making consistency effortless.

🏡 Design Your Environment to Outsmart Your Brain

Experts in behavioural science say the most disciplined people don't use more willpower; they use it less. A new article from Bupa Global explains that the key to staying active is designing your environment to make good choices easier. Simple tricks like leaving your gym kit by your bed or scheduling workouts with a friend remove friction and create cues that trigger good habits automatically, saving your limited willpower for when you truly need it.

Source: Bupa Global

💪 Self-Control Is a Better Predictor of Health Than You Think

A 2024 review in Current Opinion in Psychology found that trait self-control is a crucial factor in translating good intentions into consistent action. The research highlights two key mechanisms: self-control helps us make better decisions by weighing future benefits, and it provides the follow-through needed to execute those decisions. This suggests that building self-discipline is a key strategy for maintaining long-term health behaviours.

🎉 The Power of Immediate Rewards in Habit Building

We often think long-term goals, like better health, should be enough to motivate us, but research from Yale suggests otherwise. A 2025 article highlights that immediate gratification is a far more powerful driver of persistence. Incorporating something fun into your goals, like listening to a great audiobook only while you work out, makes the process itself enjoyable. This immediate reward is a stronger predictor of success than the promise of a distant benefit.

Source: Yale

⏳ Forget 21 Days: Forming a Habit Takes 2-5 Months

A massive 2024 meta-analysis has officially debunked the popular "21-day habit myth." The review, which synthesised 20 different studies, found that it takes a median of 59 days for a new health behaviour to start feeling automatic, with the average time ranging from 106 to 154 days. This is great news, as it gives us permission to be patient and realistic, understanding that building a lasting habit is a marathon, not a sprint.

Sources: Health Care

📉 Procrastination and Self-Discipline Are Directly Linked

If you struggle with procrastination, building self-discipline might be the key. A meta-analytic review of over 70,000 participants confirmed a strong negative correlation between the two traits. The findings show that as self-discipline increases, procrastination tendencies decrease significantly. This reinforces the idea that discipline isn't just about forcing yourself to do things; it's a skill that fundamentally reshapes your approach to tasks.

👍 Actionable Tip of the Week

Try this routine tonight!

Temptation Bundling

Link an action you want to do with an action you need to do. This strategy, developed by behavioural scientist Katherine Milkman, "bundles" an instantly gratifying activity with a habit you're trying to build. For example: only allow yourself to listen to your favourite podcast while you're doing laundry, or only watch your guilty-pleasure Netflix show while you're on the treadmill. This creates a powerful incentive system where the thing you need to do becomes the gateway to the thing you love.

Identify one "want" (a podcast, a show, a special coffee) and one "need" (exercise, chores, meal prep). This week, make a rule that you can only enjoy the "want" while you are performing the "need." Notice how it changes your feelings about the task.

❝

Discipline is choosing between what you want now and what you want most.

Abraham Lincoln

😊 Fun, Quirky, Interesting

The other side of Health and Life

🏋️‍♂️ The Bizarre History of Exercise Explained in 8 Minutes

In this engaging piece, Harvard professor Daniel Lieberman unpacks common myths (like the “10,000 steps” target) while tracing how the concept of exercise evolved. It’s short, punchy and full of “aha” moments for anyone interested in why staying active looks the way it does today.

Source: The Big Think

🏛️ A search for the Origins of the Push-up

This whimsical deep-dive describes how the humble push-up may have ancient roots under a far more poetic name: “kissing the ground in equilibrium on the arms and the points of the feet”. It’s a light, historical look at how one familiar exercise got less familiar over time, perfect for a smile and a little reflection on movement history.

Source: Stark Center

🌙 What are Dreams for?

A beautifully written piece by Amanda Gefter that explores the odd world of dreams: why our bodies twitch during sleep, how even foetuses spend huge time in REM, and what that might tell us about our inner lives. Even though it’s not about exercise per se, it ties into wellbeing and the curious ways our brains keep working when we’re “at rest”.

Source: New Yorker

🐶 20 minutes of Adorable Puppies

If you’ve had a stressful day and need to wind down a bit we have the perfect option for you. 20 minutes of adorable puppies doing puppy things. No message. Nothing to thing about. Just puppies ☺️

Source: YouTube

Thanks for reading!

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Disclaimer: The content of this newsletter does not constitute medical advice. You should always take the advice of a qualified health professional as required.