When you are trying to build healthy nutrition behaviors, it’s important to consider your goals along with the systems you use to help you achieve them. The main distinction between systems and goals is that a goal is the outcome or result you want to achieve, and a system is the process that helps you achieve it. A system involves all of the small actions that form a habit.
For example, your goal might be to lose weight, but your system may be how you plan meals, exercise, etc.
As you develop healthy behaviors, it is crucial to also build sustainable systems and processes that will enable those behaviors to become part of your everyday life — instead of just something you do for a few months.
Systems vs. Goals
While we know that goals are important, we have also recognized that they aren’t everything when it comes to changing behavior. If you think about it, 2 individuals could have the exact same SMART goal. But one could fail while the other achieves success. What’s the differentiator? It’s not the goal that makes the difference, it’s the systems each individual relies on to obtain their results.
Goals also tend to lead to short-term change, while systems set you up for long-term success. For example, your goal may be to prepare 3 dinners at home each week for the next 3 months. No matter how SMART it is, the goal only spans for 3 months. What happens when your goal is complete? Without a good system in place to continue preparing meals at home, you may not adopt that behavior as a lifelong habit.
Let’s build on the idea that goals have a finality to them. When you reach your deadline, it’s like winning a game. However, developing your system is like playing the game and making adjustments along the way. The system is a mindset of constant refinement and improvement.
Changing Your Habits
If you aren’t able to reach some of the goals you have set, don’t get discouraged! The problem isn’t you or your goal; it’s most likely the wrong system to enable the change you want. But how can you know where your system is failing?
We previously talked about being aware of the small, routine activities you perform and rating them based on their effectiveness. You could use a similar approach to identify areas of improvement in your system. Write down all of the small actions that you take related to your SMART goal.
Then, you can analyze the activities on your list and determine if they are helping or hindering your system. Sometimes, the entire system might need to be revamped, and that’s okay! Systems will never be perfect; there will always be room for improvement (which is why we are constantly updating our platform).
To sum it up, the better your system, the easier it will be to build good habits.
A Complete System
When it comes to nutrition goals, EatLove has you covered. EatLove is designed to be a complete nutrition system to help you build healthy behaviors around food. It is a framework you can follow to achieve your goals — whatever those may be.
The end-to-end system starts with planning meals that meet your nutrition requirements. You can customize your meal plans to fit your preferences and lifestyle. Swap out meals for ones that you love. Add your own recipes or edit recipes that are in our system. Then, you can add ingredients to your grocery list, which you can tailor to remove ingredients you already have or add other ingredients you might need to pick up. We’ve added the option for grocery delivery to make it easier to get your groceries.
When preparing meals, you can follow our recipes and then enjoy a nutritious meal. Finally, the EatLove system allows you to log your foods and track your daily nutrition to help you get a better understanding of your food habits and daily nutrient intake.
It’s a comprehensive system designed to support health goals around food and build better behaviors.
ASK YOURSELF THIS:
What goals have you set that you haven’t been able to achieve? What were some of the inefficiencies in your system? How could you overcome them to improve your system?
TRY THIS:
Take advantage of EatLove’s end-to-end system by utilizing all of the platform’s capabilities for at least 1 meal. That includes planning the meal on the app, creating a grocery list and tailoring it to add/remove items for your next grocery trip, and logging your meal.
We hope that you can view our platform as more than just a tool but as a complete system you can follow to achieve sustainable results. Start building your system by logging in and planning today!