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Key points
- Finding the diet and exercise program that fits one's scheduling style increases their chances of sticking to it.
- With a "flexible" diet or exercise plan, a participant can choose how and when they use the resources provided.
- With a "strict commitment" diet or exercise plan, a participant has very little flexibility in choosing how to use the resources provided.
If you are like me, you probably don’t live a perfectly healthy life. You eat a few things you know you shouldn’t. ("Did I really need that extra piece of cake?") You have a drink after a stressful day. And you find an excuse as to why right now is not the best time to exercise... while saying you strive to maintain a healthier lifestyle.
Recently, I have been researching what programs people find motivating when it comes to eating well and exercising. When it comes to both behaviors, I have found that there are two types of programs that are available to people in the market.
The “flexible commitment” plan
One type of program offers a subscription, either monthly or annually, and provides access to resources that will help people achieve their goals. If the goal is eating healthier or losing weight, it can involve meetings with support groups, lectures about nutrients and cooking sensible meals, or helping with counting calories. If the goal is exercising, it can involve access to a gym with equipment, classes, and trainers.
In both cases, the person engaging in these programs has the flexibility to choose how they want to utilize the resources, when they want to use them, and in what capacity and frequency. The only commitment that is made is to the subscription, hence the access to these resources. I call this the “flexible commitment” plan.
The “strict commitment” plan
Another type of program offers packages that need to be consumed within a specific timeframe. These packages are paid in advance for very specific and clear services. If the goal is eating healthier or losing weight, it can involve providing a certain amount of healthy meals within a certain amount of timeframe, signing up for specific weekly meetings, getting a certain amount of meetings with a nutritionist within a certain timeframe, and so forth. If the goal is exercising, it can involve signing up for specific types of classes on specific days, or a specific number of training sessions within a specific timeframe, and so on.
In these cases, the person engaging in these programs has very little flexibility in choosing how they want to use the resources or when they want to use them. They commit in advance to the amount and frequency of the resources they paid for. I call this the “strict commitment” plan.
Are you a "strict" or "flexible" person?
The fact that two such programs exist in the market shows that when it comes to motivating people to do the right thing but not necessarily the desired thing, people differ in their reactions.
For some of us, a strict commitment plan can be the only thing that can force us to eat right and exercise, while for others, a flexible commitment plan is what will make us achieve our goals. What might be the reason that some of us thrive with a flexible commitment plan while others shy away from it, and vice versa?
Notice that one of the main differences between the two plans is their restriction on time. The flexible commitment plan allows you to choose how you want the activities they offer to fit into your schedule. In one week, you may exercise three times a week, while not exercising at all the following week. The frequency depends on how you feel that week, your level of energy, how busy the week is, and so forth. The strict commitment plan ignores how you feel or whether you are having a busy week. The activities are set in your schedule, whether you like it or not. In other words, you have to make time for these activities and force yourself to do them.
My research has been looking at how relying on the clock to schedule one’s activities affects various aspects of one’s life. (See my prior posts for more.) It seems it is relevant here too.
For those who choose to organize their lives based on “the clock," the strict commitment plan seems natural and fits with the way they arrange their lives and goals. The concept of using an external cue, such as time, to decide on when an activity, such as eating or exercising, begins or ends, makes perfect sense. That way, they do not need to rely on their own inner sense to decide when to eat or exercise.
For those who do not rely on the clock but organize their lives based on the order of events (event-timers), the flexible plan makes more sense. Event-timers will eat what they feel like eating at the time of the meal, and when they are hungry. They will exercise when they feel it fits with their level of energy and mood, and the busyness of their schedule. They rely on their own internal senses to make these decisions. Therefore the flexibility of the plan allows them to utilize the resources when it feels right to them.
Now that we better understand the underlying construct of each of these types of plans, it is easier to choose one that will motivate us the most. If you are a person who organizes their day based on the clock, then you should choose a strict commitment plan. However, if you are a person who organizes their day based on the order of events, then you should choose a flexible commitment plan. And if you are a business that offers these services, then you want to be flexible yourself and offer both types of programs—there will be enough people to commit to both options.
