Can Willpower be developed? Hope for the “Out of Control”

“I have no willpower,” is a common complaint I hear from people who struggle with weight problems. There was a time in my life when I suffered from “willpower deficiency,” and seemed to have no control over what I ate. I can recall as a teenager, indulging in a daily ritual of consuming larger amounts of food after dinner. Thick wedges of chocolate cake with icing washed down with milk and generous servings of pasta with butter were typical of my nightly indulgences. Needless to say, at the time, I weighed 80 pounds more than my ideal weight. I would never engage in this behavior now, and I find it distasteful to even think about partaking in such excessive consumption.

Many years later, I now maintain a healthy weight by eating in moderation and adhering consistently to a fairly rigorous exercise regimen. My transformation to a healthy lifestyle involved the gradual implementation of numerous changes. These changes, evolved from a complex set of skills I acquired over a period of several years that contributed to my development of self- discipline. Although the initially steps I took required extreme significant fortitude and effort, as my new habits began to take over, it became less painstaking. Although maintaining a discipline lifestyle still requires diligence and planning, my motivation is automatically (other word) fueled by the sense of satisfaction I feel from feeling in control of my life choices.

As a result of my own experience, I have always believed that will power can be developed. However, what remained a mystery was why so few people seem been able to improve be successful at accomplishment this, despite extraordinary effort.

Well, now it seems a growing body of research may explain why. According to Roy F. Baumeister and, Dianne M. Tice of Florida State University and Kathleen D. Vohs of the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, self control can be developed in much the same way a muscle of the body can be, with consistent training. This team of psychologists has been studying the topic of self-control for several years. Their research has demonstrated that willpower is not merely a mindset or character trait as we once thought. Rather, there are specific physiological responses that take place in the body when you exert it (similar to the “fight or flight” response). Just as you can increase the strength of a bicep muscle through progressive training with weights, by exerting willpower over time, you can strengthen your overall ability to exercise self-control. The authors also describe self-control as being limited. We all have a willpower reserve that becomes depleted through use. Since willpower is used for many tasks, such as writing a research paper or abstaining from charging purchases to your credit card, when we use up willpower for one task, it depletes our overall reserve.

Interestingly, glucose (a form of sugar) is the energy source that we rely on for willpower and that acts of self-control rely on glucose as a source of energy for cognitive tasks as well as those requiring physical exertion ( Gailliott, Baumeister, Tice et.al.(Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 2007). This may explain my tendency to crave sweet snacks when I am writing on a deadline. If the body becomes depleted of glucose, acts requiring willpower will be especially difficult to implement. People who have conditions that impair their ability to use glucose efficiently, such as diabetes or metabolic syndrome, are more likely to experience glucose depletions. The good news is that you can take steps to rejuvenate from these depleted states such as listening to music. Scheduling activities that require the use of willpower can also increase compliance (Kathleen Martin Ginis, Psychology and Health, 2007).

Some researchers believe that the key to developing self-discipline may lie in our ability to delay gratification. Walter Mischel, currently a psychology professor at Columbia University started exploring the topic of “self-regulation through a series of experiments at Stanford University in the late nineteen sixties. Commonly referred to as the “marshmallow tests,” Mischel placed four year olds one at a time in a room and asked them to pick a treat from a tray of marshmallows, cookies and pretzels. He then informed them that when he left the room, they would have the choice of eating the one treat right away or waiting until he returned to the room and have two. He observed that while the majority of children could not wait even a few minutes to eat the treat, 30% were able to wait as long as fifteen minutes. Tapes of the children who were able to delay their gratification showed them using various forms of distraction such as singing, twirling their hair or kicking the table. The research which is ongoing, reveals that willpower may have has less to do with will and more to do with re-directing our attention to something else. I used this strategy of delaying gratification to prevent evening binge eating. I effectively talked myself out of eating after dinner, by promising myself a bagel for breakfast in the morning. Although the studies reveal that some people are more naturally adept at delaying gratification, those that were not, are capable of improving this skill.

Perhaps the most promising research related to the issue of self-control focuses on the neuroplasticity of the brain. This is the brains ability to change in response to experiences. Until recently, scientists assumed that we are born with a fixed number of brain cells that they die off as we age. A new body of research is revealing that our brains continue to make new cells throughout our lives and challenges the previously held belief that significant changes in the way we think and behave is fixed at a young age. It also reveals that the brain is far more malleable than we realized and can respond and change through mental training and conditioning. Science writer Sharon Begley in Train Your Mind Change Your Brain (Ballantine Books) chronicles the work of a team of scientists who studied monks in Dharamasala, India using MRI imaging. The research demonstrated that that meditation produced a heightened brain state associated with perception, problem solving and consciousness. Moreover, they observed that the heightened brain states were sustained during non-meditative states.

If willpower can be developed through consistent and progressive training, it may explain why so many people have not been able to achieve lasting success at changing habits. Since most commercial programs designed to promote weight loss for example, require that participants make numerous significant changes in a short period of time, they bypass the opportunity for the habits to gel permanently. My journey of change has been a slow and consistently one, which required patience and endurance, clearly contrary to the “quick fix” culture we live in. Accepting that changing lifestyle habits may be a more difficult process initially that takes time may be difficult for many folks to swallow. However the alternative of remaining overweight and sedentary and significantly increasing your risk of chronic debilitating diseases is far worse.
Learning to delay gratification and making healthier choices requires diligence and hard work. However, it is an investment that yields a return that you cannot afford to pass up.

If you would like to increase your willpower consider the following:

Be patient. Train progressively by starting slowly and building change gradually. If you do not exercise at all start walking 30 minutes a few times a week. If you take on too much too soon, you will sabotage.

Break down large goals into smaller achievable objectives- If you have a lot of weight to lose, consider focusing on stopping overindulgent behavior before you implement other dietary changes.

Schedule your exercise routines- Make appointments with yourself at specific times of day to exercise instead of trying to fit it in at some point. You are more likely to comply with your intention.

Develop effective strategies for delaying gratification. Get involved in stimulating activities that nourish you creatively and intellectually. When you feel your willpower waning, remind yourself that the rewards of living a healthy lifestyle are greater than the immediate gratification of self-destructive habits

Maintain sufficient levels of energy by consuming foods that produce longer lasting glucose loads. Oatmeal, nuts, sources of protein, whole grain breads, fruits and vegetables will sustain you much longer than sugary based foods.

If your willpower reserves are depleted, rejuvenate by taking a break to do something restful or fun…