• About
    • Penny
    • Hank
    • Juju
  • Contact
  • How To Start A Blog
  • Make Money Blogging
    • How To Make $40K Your First Year Blogging
    • Making Sense Of Affiliate Marketing
    • How To Monetize A Food Blog
    • Food Blogger Pro
  • Blogging Tips
    • Blogging Resources
    • Recommended Blogging Tools
    • Blogging Tips
      • More Quick Blogging Tips
    • How To Increase Blog Traffic
      • SEO For Health Blogging
      • External SEO Tips
      • On Site SEO Tips
    • Blogging Action Plan
      • Deciding Why You Blog
      • Types of Health Blogs
      • Important WordPress Settings
      • Blog Security
      • WordPress Plugins
      • WordPress Themes
  • Shop
    • Planner Favorites
    • Fitness Favorites
    • Kitchen Tools
    • Blogging Books

A Merry Life

Healthy Living & Budgeting Blog | Health, Wealth & Everything Else

  • Budgeting
  • Finances
  • Fitness
  • Food
  • Family Life
  • YouTube

Decision Fatigue & How to Deal

April 30, 2015 by Mary

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for details.

One of the most common complaints about eating healthy and losing weight is finding the time to do it all. You have to prep meals, count calories, plan for special occasions, find time to exercise, and still manage all your normal responsibilities with work and family. It can be exhausting which is why many of us don’t make a lot of progress. We get bogged down in making a billion decisions and then burnt out when we don’t see results.

decision fatigue and how to dealI find that decision fatigue is one of my ongoing problems. By the end of a typical day I’m so tired of making choices and decisions that if I don’t have a dinner already planned I’ll reach for whatever is nearby or go to a restaurant. One of the reasons why I enjoyed the 24 Day Challenge was because I had a plan where a lot of decisions were already made for me. I didn’t have to think about it as much. There wasn’t decision fatigue when I had fewer decisions to make.

When you have to make too many choices during a day it leads to mental exhaustion. It’s why lots of famously successful people choose to wear the same clothes everyday – getting rid of little decisions like that frees you up to think about more important things. We are affected by decision fatigue almost every day as we wake up and then start the endless decision making process – what to eat for breakfast, how to handle work situations, where to go for lunch, etc. The choices you make through the day – big or small – wear you down a bit each time. These choices gradually use up your mental energy and zap your willpower.

Obviously decision fatigue can be a problem when you are counting on willpower to help you make healthier decisions. How do you say no to fast food or buying ice cream at the grocery store when you’ve used up the majority of your mental power already? Marketers actually count on this happening to you so you will give in to those impulse buys. The damage you do to your healthy lifestyle usually happens at the end of the day when you feel drained and have trouble making the best decisions.

There are a few options to combat decision fatigue. Create a set meal plan for the week or cook once for the whole week. Or create several healthy meals you will eat over and over again and make those at meal times. Only go grocery shopping in the morning on the weekend or when you are mentally awake. Go to bed early at the same exact time every night. Set up as many systems and plans as you can to make healthy choices for you.

Lately I’ve been experience decision fatigue in a major way. I’ve not made as much progress as I hoped after my challenge because I’ve been in the foggy mental state of decision fatigue on most days. I recognize the problem so now I’m working on a few technique to combat it. Nailing down a more set schedule is my first goal and then I will be following it up with reducing the amount of decisions I have to make in a day. I’ll have a set breakfast that I can eat each morning for example.

Honestly, most of us could benefit from reducing the amount of decisions we have to make every day. Finding ways to automate and reduce your decision making during the day will help you free up some much needed mental energy for other things. The fewer decisions we have to make the easier it will be to achieve our goals!

Maybe you need to wear the same clothes every day or have a set breakfast and lunch or have a standing appointment to workout at the same time. Whatever those decisions are, let’s make them once and then allow ourselves the freedom not to have to make them over and over. Let’s get rid of decision fatigue.

Filed Under: Awesome Tips, Thoughts Tagged With: decision fatigue, Healthy Living, healthy tips, meal planning, planning


« 7 Things To Consider Besides Salary Before Accepting A Job Offer
Wedding Weekend Recap »

Comments

  1. Christina@LoveYourselfHealthy says

    May 4, 2015 at 10:53 am

    I’ve never actually heard the term “decision fatigue”, but it definitely is something I’ve experienced! It’s nice to have an actual name for it. I really need to step up my meal planning game; I’m good about planning WHAT to eat, but I need to work on prepping and making it easier to actually make the meals.

    • A Merry Life says

      May 4, 2015 at 3:05 pm

      It’s not commonly used regarding healthy living choices, but it totally still applies here!

  2. Noemi, the health hunter says

    May 4, 2015 at 3:12 pm

    This is my life :D I just didn’t know that it has a name.
    I hate making decisions, especially when I’m too busy with work. I’m just too tired to think for one minute. That’s why I usually have the same breakfast every day. My brain is too tired anyway to know what I do, what I eat ;) I usually eat oatmeal, some days with frozen fruits, other days with nuts and almond. It’s easy decision.
    However, I always struggle with creating a meal plan, too. Because I know that I will be too tired to make a “new” breakfast or dinner, although I would like to try new foods. I’m in a bit of a contradiction with myself, I guess…

  3. Silas says

    May 8, 2015 at 10:40 am

    Decision fatigue is a more than apt description of what you are talking about. Thanks for the food for thought. I like having things to ponder over a weekend. :)

    -Silas

  4. Jenni says

    May 21, 2015 at 7:22 am

    Not sure if I agree with this

    It sounds like an excuse to not to bother to eat healthily.

    We do all have decisions to make every day but if unsure go with the safe option and save time and energy.

    Even if you go to a restaurant you will still have to decide what to eat etc.

  5. Alice says

    June 10, 2015 at 1:50 pm

    I understand what you are saying and like most people faced with lots of minor decisions during the day, I tend to go for the easy option.

    Breakfast? Simple. Same as yesterday
    Clothes? Same as yesterday with new top
    Dinner? Cook enough for two and microwave the leftovers for tomorrow’s dinner

mary Welcome to my journey to improve my health, wealth, and everything in-between!
Join me as I learn and share helpful tips and tricks I find along the way.
  • Bloglovin
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube
Ebates Coupons and Cash Back

Popular Posts

weight loss gift ideas healthy chocolate protein pancake recipe how to start a blog how to make money blogging

Search

Recent Posts

  • Whole30 Reflections 1 Year Later + Recipes I’m Loving
  • 10 Reasons To Get Out Of Debt
  • July 2019 Online Income Report
  • Should You Go on Vacation While Paying Off Debt?
  • How Much YouTube Paid Me For 2 Million Views

Top Posts & Pages

  • Apartment Essentials For Single Ladies
  • Diet Tips For People With Kidney Stones
  • DIY White Painted Dresser
  • Baby Shower Brunch Food & Drink Ideas
  • The Chick-fil-A Grilled Market Salad Review
  • 50 Fitness Motivation Quotes For Your Motivation Board
  • Kale & Mozzarella Chicken Burgers (Burgers by AmyLu) Review
  • How to Deodorize Smelly Shoes
  • Chocolate Protein Oatmeal Pancake Recipe
  • What Is A Good Body Fat Percentage?

Categories

Disclosure!

Note: Affiliate links may pop up on the site when I'm recommending something. They are free for you to use, but they help support me by giving me a small commission of any sales. It's like leaving a tip for good service while buying something you'd purchase anyway. Thank you for supporting A Merry Life!

Copyright © 2022 · A Merry Life - Healthy Living & Weight Loss Blog. Tasteful Theme by Restored 316 Designs

A Merry Life (amerrylife.com) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Copyright © 2022 · Tasteful Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in