Sacrificing Health Doesn’t Help You Achieve Your Goals Faster – Here’s Why

Health is often the first thing we sacrifice when life gets busy.

After all, what’s wrong with skipping a few workouts here and there, or eating those extra slices of pizza just because? Ultimately, we’re still going to make it to our goals, right?

Wrong.

In this blog post, we’ll explain why health is the number one priority to focus on when it comes to achieving success in life.

Why We Neglect Our Health

To start off, let’s take a step back and look at why we often neglect our health:

Time — We are so busy that taking care of ourselves often gets pushed to the back burner.
Motivation — We don’t always have the motivation to take care of ourselves when we are tired or just feeling blah.
Goals — We may not see the need for investing in our health if we’re already achieving certain goals, such as financial success.

The truth is, however, that while we often justify neglecting our health in favour of our goals, in reality, the two are directly linked.

How We Neglect Our Health

For most of us high achievers, here’s the internal monologue we often have with ourselves:

“If I have time to work on my goals, then that’s the best use of my time.”
“I’ll just deal with any health issues later when I’m done.”
“I can always make up for lost sleep or workouts when I have more free time or once I’ve reached my goals.”

And here are 3 common ways we neglect our health:

Sleep — We often burn the midnight oil to try and squeeze in extra work, sacrificing much-needed rest.
Exercise — We often put off exercising or don’t make it a priority.
Nutrition — We may fill up on quick, processed foods to save time instead of eating healthier meals.

How Neglecting Your Health Affects Your Career and Relationships

Now, I understand that it’s easy to get caught up in the hustle of achieving your goals and forget about taking care of yourselves. I’m guilty of this sometimes too.

However, neglecting your health can have a direct impact on your ability to reach these goals. Here are just some of the effects:

Decreased energy and focus — When we don’t take care of ourselves, our energy and focus suffer. This can make it difficult to stay on track with our goals or think clearly enough to come up with solutions.
Decreased productivity — When we don’t rest or fuel our bodies properly, we won’t be as productive as we could be if we were taking care of ourselves.
Increased stress — Poor health can cause increased levels of stress, which in turn can lead to decreased motivation and productivity.

In real terms, here’s how it can affect your career, business and relationships:

Your career/business — You might find it hard to stay engaged in work and have the energy to perform at your peak. You could also end up making a lot of mistakes due to lack of focus, or take longer than necessary to complete tasks.
Your relationships — Neglecting your health can lead to increased stress and fatigue, which can put a strain on relationships.

Small Sacrifices Compound Over Time – And Very Rapidly

The truth is, while sacrificing our health may not seem like a big deal at first, these small sacrifices compound over time – and very rapidly!

In the long run, it takes its toll and eventually catches up with us. And the more we ignore our health, the harder it will be to get back on track.

In fact, one of the hardest things to do is to reverse the damage we’ve done. The longer-term effects of poor health can be far-reaching and can severely affect our ability to stay focused, motivated and achieve success in any area of life.

The Good News: The Opposite Is Also True

The good news is that the opposite is also true: The small investments we make in our health will compound just as quickly! We can start to feel energized, passionate and motivated when we are taking care of ourselves.

It might be a challenge at first, because you’re likely to be accustomed to neglecting your health.

But the more attention you give to it, the bigger the payoff will be in all areas of life – and the easier it is to maintain and make it a natural part of your everyday life.

Overcoming The Initial Resistance

We get it – when life is busy, taking care of your health can seem like a hassle.

And when you’re already not feeling your best, it can be even harder to find the motivation to get started.

The hardest part is just getting started. But once you do, you’ll find it easier to stay on track and make your health a priority every day.

Here are some tips to help you make the transition to prioritizing yourself:

Start small — Take baby steps and don’t expect perfection right away. Schedule in time for yourself each day and stick with it!
Set SMART goals — Make sure that you set specific, measurable and achievable goals to help stay motivated.
Focus on things in the right order — Not all health habits need to be addressed at once, and not all health habits should be done now. Prioritize the habits you are most likely to stick with and work your way up from there.
Reward yourself — Celebrate small successes and reward yourself for your efforts!
Get some help from experts — It’s hard enough already to make changes on your own, so don’t be afraid to reach out for help. There are tons of professionals who can help guide you with developing a healthy lifestyle.
Create Accountability — Find someone who can hold you accountable and motivate you to keep going on your health journey.

Would You Like Some Help?

Health should be the number one priority when it comes to achieving success in life but we understand that this can be difficult to do on your own.

At The Wellness Edge, we offer professional health coaching services to help you start living a healthier lifestyle and reach your goals. We specialize in creating personalized health plans that are tailored to meet your individual needs and help you create sustainable habits.

If that sounds like something you’d be interested in, don’t hesitate to reach out for a free consultation with one of our coaches today!

At the end of the day, health is your wealth – it’s the foundation of everything. Investing in yourself is the best way to ensure you have the energy and focus to reach success — no matter what area of life you’re currently working on. So don’t wait any longer — start investing in your health today!

To your wellness,
Jen Edge