We’re three weeks into the new year and I’m sure that many of you have already put aside your New Years resolutions. Which is understandable, especially if you’re three weeks into a new fitness or exercise regimen. Where are the results?
According to new research reported on in yesterday’s NY Times, those results are going to take time. At least 6 months, and more likely, a year or more.
In the study of men, observers and subjects were asked to rate their bodies before and after 6 weeks’ worth of fitness training and exercise. The results?
Results were not surprising. The subjects rated themselves more highly than anyone else rated them, and female panelists rated the subjects lower than the male subjects or panelists rated them. But, over all, the subjects’ ratings barely changed, if at all, after their exercise program. And neither did objective measures, like weight or percentage of body fat, or waist size or the size of the bicep or thigh.
Yup, 6 weeks isn’t long enough to start noticing (or experiencing) real change in virtually anybody’s body. So what length of time is?
“To make a change in how you look, you are talking about a significant period of training,” Dr. Kraemer said. “In our studies it takes six months to a year.” And, he added, that is with regular strength-training workouts, using the appropriate weights and with a carefully designed individualized program. “That is what the reality is,” he said.
And genetic differences among individuals mean some people respond much better to exercise than others [...]
In other words, it likely took you years to get to the body you have today, and it’s going to take a similar amount of time to get back to a more healthy and fit body.
I say the same thing to folks who ask how long psychotherapy generally takes to help a person with a mental health concern. Depending upon the concern, its severity, and the person’s willingness to make significant changes, most mental health issues cannot be resolved in just a few weeks’ time.
Just like in physical health, it almost always takes months — and occasionally, years — to make significant changes in our lives to successfully treat a mental health concern.
This isn’t meant to talk you out of your goals, but rather help you set realistic expectations internally for yourself. Because nothing is more demoralizing than expecting to see change in a certain period of time, and seeing none — not because the change isn’t occurring, but because it’s occurring in such gradual and small increments that it can be difficult to notice when looked at in such a small time period.
Read the full article: Fitness Isn’t an Overnight Sensation
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Links to This Article
Grand Mother Remedy » Blog Archive » How Long Does Change Take? At Least 6 Months (1/22/2009)
Change is Always Possible (1/23/2009)
Strong Women Stay Healthy and Well | Alternative Medicine Blog (6/16/2009)
6 Comments to
“How Long Does Change Take? At Least 6 Months”
It kind of depends on how you measure change. I work mainly with hypnotherapy to help clients make significant changes in their life.
Generally I find it takes about three weeks to make a significant change. This time frame is to deal with anxiety, low self esteem or or low self confidence issues. Weight control takes longer if it is to be sustainable.
Three weeks seems to be the time needed to change a new habit into a subconscious response. Hypnosis is a tool that enables the client to move to the point where the desired outcome becomes the new sub-conscious habit.
I encourage clients to keep a journal as often the changes are subtle in the beginning and it is easy to miss the start of positive change without this tool.
Deep seated trauma however does seem to take longer especially where this goes back to childhood. Often it feels as if the client is so used to living within the trauma that making the positive change is in itself a major challenge.
Ha.. think this could be forwarded to the insurance companies? They seem to think we can change our ways in what, 12 visits??!!
It depends on the patient too, and I wish therapists would keep that in mind. I have ADHD and it’s hard for me to set new habits because they don’t stick in my mind. F/I I take a thyroid supplement and have over 10 years. I spent a couple of days at my mom’s, and when I got home forgot to unpack my med and put it in its usual prominent place. Without the visual cue, I forgot to take it for 10 days! By day 10 I was so exhausted I could barely get out of bed after 12 hours sleep and was gaining weight, and couldn’t figure out why.
This kind of thing happens to me all the time. I try to explain this to my therapists who tell me I’m just being argumentative and don’t want to set new habits, but this happens no matter how hard I try, and I never know when it’ll occur. Very frustrating! I forget about old friends, things scheduled weekly, favorite programs on TV, what day of the week it is. There is no “benefit” keeping me this way, it’s just a weird and annoying brain malfunction.
I am ADD but I still remember to brush my teeth every day and I take my meds every day even if I left the bottle in my suitcase.
Excuses, excuses, excuses…you are a victim of your own self. No therapy or meds is going to help you.
Yes its a brain malfunction but its not to be used as a crutch.
I am ADD but I still remember to brush my teeth every day and I take my meds every day even if I left the bottle in my suitcase.
Excuses, excuses, excuses…you are a victim of your own self. No therapy or meds is going to help you.
Yes its a brain malfunction but its not to be used as a crutch for sympathy.
Maybe its depression. I would be depressed to if I was unwilling to really fix myself and use the meds as the only method to improve my life.
Oh my–pretty harsh!! There could be other things going on here that only a PROFESSIONAL could diagnose–such as in my case my internal medicine DOCTOR (as in M.D.) found out I had low thyroid & pernicious anemia which both lead to depression, low energy, memory problems, etc.–all the symptoms mentioned above that you are blaming on “unwilling to really fix myself.” Plus I also happen to have ADD & bipolar disorder. But I am also a wife of 34 years, a mother of 2 grown wonderfully competent young adults & actually do contribute to society myself as well through my job & volunteer work in the jail (co-leading a women’s support group with a therapist there) & doing other classes through NAMI.
Using all the tools available to us are essential–lifestyle changes; medications, if prescribed; therapy (hmm–or is this a crutch in your opinion?); education; MEDICAL ASSISTANCE; family support; friends; support groups, perhaps, etc.
Please, just because YOU are so capable do not denigrate those of us who need to take advantage of the other opportunities (tools) available. It is not a weakness to week help!!
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Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 22 Jan 2009
