Today I’m feeling rather burnt out.  It seems like when I push through a list of activities that I’m not thrilled about, especially when there are time constraints involved, I get to the point where I really cannot force myself to do one more thing I don’t want to do.  That’s when I want nothing more thank to just sit in front of the t.v. with a bag of kettle corn.  Turns out, it’s only natural — I have “proof” proof!

According to a Science Daily piece last week, exercising will-power on one task can decrease or deplete our ability to exercise will-power on another (see article here).  The study involved tasking a group with exercising will-power by doing something that was a bit counter-intuitive (reading the name of a color listed on a card of a different color), and then tracking how much the participants literally exercised afterward.  The control group exercised more.  Now, this really doesn’t seem like a very well-rounded or academic study to me, but I think we can all agree on its conclusion:  if we have to exercise our will-power all day on one thing, we are going to feel less inclined to exercise it elsewhere later on. Why do so many people crack on diets? Probably because if a person has to practice restraint around food all day at work, lets say, by the time she gets home and is faced with a piece of pie, her will-power reservoir (and sanity) has probably dissolved into thin air like a one-hit-wonder.

We seem to view will-power as an allowance sitting in a bank from which we make withdrawals every day. At the end of the day, we’ve usually withdrawn too much. Maybe you look at your dog whose begging for walk, leash in mouth, tail wagging, and you say, “Sorry, bud, but I’ve got non-sufficient-will-power — I withdrew too much today.” Is it all in our head? Do we really get to a point where we’ve practiced so much will-power that we really have no more left?

There was a Biggest Loser episode where they aimed to mimic “real life” and had the contestants work all day at a pizza parlor to show them how hard it would be to come home and go to the gym after having spent a day at work.  Was it will-power they were testing, or the actual effects of physical exhaustion?  They’re definitely related, which is something this study doesn’t seem to take into account — it takes for granted that will-power is inevitably tied to a person’s level of physical energy. It also depends on the person’s view of what tasks are taxing (some crazy people actually look forward to exercise).  Also, does going to work automatically relate to exercising will-power (some anomalous people actually like their jobs)?  The article doesn’t clearly define “will power,” so how would you define it?

The good news, per the article, is that we can train ourselves to increase our will-power funds.  These are their recommendations:

• Listen to music (but which kind? Some music merely inspires me to have a cocktail, not get on the treadmill!)
• Make specific commitments (e.g. to exercise at 7 p.m. with a friend. Making it a concrete goal makes it harder to back out)
• Practice exerting more will-power daily in small increments.  The scientist quoted likens will-power to a muscle that can be built over time.

What do you guys think about will-power?  Is it finite, infinite, like funds you withdraw from a bank on a daily basis? A muscle you can build? Do you find it harder to work-out after you’ve had a very restrained day? Would the above listed tips really help you hit the treadmill after an exhausting day?

In the News/Spreading the Awesomeness

• Wallet Pop‘s, “Use Food Labels to Know What you’re Eating? There’s a 1 in 4 Chance they’re Wrong” (9/22/09) here
• Science Daily‘s, “”Phthalates Hard To Avoid In Food: Junk Food No Worse Than Healthful Food For These Potentially Harmful Substances” (9/27/09) here
• New York Times’, “Lifting the Veil of Mere Pixel Perfection” (9/27/09) here
• Check out the Goop newsletter here which features free vegan recipes for cookies, cake, cupcakes and frosting from Babycakes Bakery! Who cares that it’s Gwenyth Paltrow’s newsletter — did you hear my squeals when I wrote FREE + VEGAN + RECIPES?

Give-Away Round Up

• Win some Clif Nectar bars here
• Win some Clif Z Bars and PB & Co. here
• Win a Lazy Baker cookie mix here
• Win a Mile 22 marathon bag here

<3, The Cranky One