Recently, I’ve been pondering a question – will I ever stop tracking my foundational health habits?
What got me thinking about this was seeing how a couple of people I follow online live out their healthy lifestyles – Josh Bridges and Paul Saladino. The thing about both of them is that their approach seems effortless.
They’re not meticulously tracking habits or counting calories. They just make good choices consistently, as if it’s second nature.
There’s no doubt about it, my system looks a little obsessive. It definitely takes time and effort. Their more natural, instinctive way of doing things really appeals to me.
I track each of my seven foundational health habits every single day with a simple tick or cross:
Then, each month, I create a new physical tracking sheet and update a monthly spreadsheet.
So yeah, there’s a bit of upkeep, both daily and monthly.
All of that said, once you get used to it, it becomes second nature. Daily tracking only takes a few minutes. The monthly admin? Maybe 30 minutes or so. In the grand scheme of things, it’s not a big time sink.
That said, it’s still a thing. And it’s certainly not as natural as what I see from Bridges and Saladino.
That contrast has made me wonder: Would life be better if I didn’t track at all? What would that feel like? How would it go?
Let me be clear: I’d never let go of the habits themselves. They’re too important to how I look, feel and live. The question is just about whether I could ever stop tracking them.
And the answer I keep coming back to?
Maybe… but certainly not any time soon.
So, why not?
- I haven’t built anywhere near a solid enough base yet
For my seven foundational health habits, four are on pretty solid ground: protein, caffeine, water, and alcohol. I consistently hit 80%+ each month. Of course, alcohol is always at 100% – because I’ve given it up for good.
But even these “safe” habits can slip. Case in point, just last month, protein dipped below 80%.
What works today can stop working tomorrow. So I need to stay alert – even with the ones that seem locked in.
Then there are the more fragile three: sleep, steps, and whole foods. These are still a work in progress. I’m pushing hard to build the same kind of consistency with them, but I’m not there yet.
So while I’ve been tracking for 38 months straight, I still feel like I’m in the early stages of the journey. I definitely haven’t built a foundation where all seven habits stick naturally at 80%+ consistently.
- I’m Not Naturally Disciplined
The second reason I don’t think I can stop tracking? I might not be naturally disciplined enough to survive without the crutch of it.
I’m not someone who finds discipline effortless. I don’t have insane willpower. I’m not the type of person who decides something and just does it forever without a system.
People like Bridges and Saladino – and even a few people in my own life – they seem to have that gear to just stick to something once they’ve made up their mind.
I don’t. I find I have to rely on routines, environment design, and tracking to stay consistent. It takes more effort. More brute force. Maybe it looks a bit over the top to everyone else, but I know deep down that it’s necessary for me.
Why tracking matters (for me)
Tracking these habits is crucial – not just to building them, but to keeping them strong.
It forces daily awareness. It forces regular reflection – every day, every month, and over the longer arc of quarters and years. That reflection helps me keep strong habits from slipping, and it helps me break through with habits that are still forming.
I’m pretty convinced that if I stopped tracking, I’d stay consistent for a while… but eventually, I’d slide. And that’s not a risk I’m willing to take.
These habits are the foundation of my physical and mental health. They give me the capacity to handle everything else in life. Letting them erode isn’t an option.
So, will I ever stop?
Maybe one day I’ll feel confident enough to let tracking go. Maybe I’ll hit a point where 80%+ consistency across all seven habits feels so natural that the tracking becomes redundant.
But honestly? I’m not convinced that day will ever come.
I think this is a forever journey. And even if I get to a point where they all feel a lot easier than they do now, daily tracking might just be what will continue to keep me accountable.
So, my answer is to will I ever stop tracking my foundational health habits –Maybe… but certainly not any time soon.
Because for me, it’s not just about ticking boxes. It’s about staying intentional. It’s about building a life where health is non-negotiable. And tracking is part of the system that keeps that life on track.
So for now, and probably for a long while, the tick sheet stays!
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