Lasting Fitness and Wellness Without Leaving Your Comfort Zone?

Unpacking the "Inside the Comfort Zone" concept for health and wellness

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

Can you improve your physique, health, and well-being from inside the comfort zone?

This question has been on my mind for a long time in both my professional and personal life. It’s a common question people ask me when I start talking about the concept of Inside The Comfort Zone.

I was 27 when I decided to get into better shape and improve my health before turning 30. I didn’t want to dread 30, so I made it a project to become the most fit version of myself.

Turning 42 this year, I’ve had various health, wellness, and fitness experiences. I’ve become strong, fast, and lean, been an active runner and racer worldwide. I’ve also been injured, fallen out of routines, gained weight, been over-stressed, and come back from all of that.

Health isn’t a destination or goal. It’s not a place you reach, or a line you cross and never have to think about again. It’s a vehicle for life that can be maintained easier than you think.

I’m professionally certified in health, wellness, and fitness. I’ve been educated by top experts and co-founded an internationally recognised Personal Trainer School. I’ve helped hundreds achieve their health goals.

Throughout my health coach career, I’ve been fascinated by the psychology behind habits, motivation, and change. And I’ve approached it through a change management lens. Before becoming a health coach, I was a top-level leader at IKEA (the Swedish furniture company) where I was responsible for implementing change and achieving high performance among the hundreds and hundreds of people under my charge.

What made my initiatives successful in my corporate career was following a simple method for leading change: Successful change happens when you’re able and willing to make it. Otherwise, change is hard to achieve.

This made me obsessed with the factors behind change. I studied, tested, and perfected it before leaving my job to start my own business. Running my coaching practice made it clear how these factors play a role in people’s actions, goals, and fulfilment.

I didn’t stay a health coach. My obsession with understanding lasting change went beyond exercise, diets, supplements. There’s more to transformation than the physical; it also needs the psychological and philosophical. Without a holistic approach, transformation just solves a problem. When the problem gets less problematic, the reason for the habits vanishes, and this often reignites the problematic side of the problem.

These observations, expertise, and obsession gave birth to Inside The Comfort Zone, helping over-thinkers and over-achievers get things done the easy way in a more lasting, efficient and enjoyable fashion.

Change doesn’t have to be hard.

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In the coming weeks, I’ll explore how you can change, perform and succeed inside your comfort zone to improve your physique, health, and well-being in a Health Series.

(And even though the series will focus on health, its implications have far greater reach than that – Inside The Comfort Zone is not only about physical performance. Also, there will probably be a following series for Relationships as well, so stay tuned)

In the upcoming Health Series:

We will explore the factors for successful change in more detail.

We’ll explore and dispel common misunderstandings about motivation and help you hack it.

We’ll look at stress and how to navigate it to avoid it stopping you from reaching your goals.

I’ll teach you about the (surprising) benefits of operating inside your comfort zone.

We’ll explore the alternatives to, “go big or go home” mentality, helping you adopt a personalised approach to transformation.

I’ll talk more about why I don’t believe in restriction, sacrifice, or willpower.

I’ll share some market research and real people’s stories.

I’ll have exclusive interviews with industry expert(s) unpacking the lies and misunderstandings of the fitness world. 

I’ll explain how creating habits can be counterproductive for lasting change.

So join me on this paradigm-shifting exploration and adventure, providing a definitive answer to whether you can improve your physique, health, and well-being from Inside The Comfort Zone.

More content will be included in future essays and chat threads. As a paying subscriber, you get full access to this health series and other Insider Community benefits.

Until next time, stay comfortable 🙏