There are a lot of plans out there in the wellness world. Nutrition plans. Workout plans. "You just gotta find a plan and stick with it!" Feh. If it were that easy, I’d be out of a job and so would all of my fellow health, fitness and wellness peers. I think wellness is a path. A path requires a bit more of a navigational effort. You need to shoot a bearing. You need to figure out a way over obstacles. You have to determine the path of least resistance to get to your destination. Shoot a Bearing Determine the end point. This is really f*cking important, guys. Don’t start until you’ve done this. Have moment with yourself and figure out what you want. Specifically. It’s your goal. It can be anything. It doesn’t have to be a weight loss goal but it can be. It doesn't have to be a “looking better naked” (body composition) goal, but it could be. It could relate to your joint health or to your mental health. It could relate to how you want to interact with the world around you - having the necessary level of health to be able to climb a mountain, or to be able to run around with your kids. It might be something like “I just want to understand how food works” or “I want to know what I should be eating so I can feel better.” By the way: I get these last two goals more than ANY OTHER health and wellness goal from my clients. I love it. What a great, sustainable goal to have. A goal based on a desire to learn, figure it out. You’ll be happier if the thing you aim for is longer term, beyond a wedding, a class reunion, a fitness competition. The end goal informs the path. So pick a goal that really matters. Identify Barriers What obstacles are in your way? Do you have the support of your family? You need to know your barriers before you can figure out how to overcome them, so do a quick audit,and be really real about it. Recognize your obstacles so you can devise a plan to get over them and make it to the end. Nutritionists, coaches and trainers are great resources to help with this. Reach the End There should be an end. A point where you put down the map and compass and just carry on with life. I don’t believe that this “navigation” should be a lifelong effort. It ends. You figure it out; you go on with your life. Freedom. Liberation. Nobody needs a nutritionist forever. A plan is just a plan. You can download a plan. You can buy a prepackaged plan. You can google a plan. You can buy books about plans. Plans are two dimensional. But a path is winding, up and down and over things. It’s fluid. It changes, sometimes unexpectedly. It twists, it turns. It has flat points. It has hard uphills and easy downhills. This path is about YOU and you are completely unique. Biochemically unique from every other organism around you.