3 questions everyone should ask before undertaking a new health intervention.
And how to set yourself up to succeed if you decide to join.
How do you decide whether or not to try a new health intervention—whether it’s for weight loss, staying fit, eating differently, a new beauty regimen, or the latest supplement trend? Do you actively seek it out, or does it appear serendipitously in your feed, inbox, or conversations?
Those two simple questions can predict your chances of success.
Good morning and happy Tuesday, health heroes—let’s get into it.
We’re living in a time of endless health options. Some are new. Some are old ideas repackaged. Some are... creative. Ice baths, keto, intermittent fasting, breathing methods like Wim Hof, even fitness tech like Peloton—every one of them promises a better version of you. The new app, the sleek device, the free trial that arrives at your door—they all tap into something primal: our human desire for reinvention.
And at first? It feels exciting. It feels possible. It feels like success is just around the corner, waiting with a high-five.
I’ve tried my share of these interventions—some purposefully, others impulsively. Only a few have stayed in my long-term repertoire. And even now, I still find it hard to ignore the magnetic pull of something new that might finally shift everything.
But I’ve learned to pause. To put it in perspective. To walk away most of the time. And that’s what I want to share with you today.
Randomly trying health interventions doesn’t make us healthier. It makes us scattered. Sporadic. Easily distracted. Fragmented. Worse, it makes us hesitant, confused, and convinced that we’re the problem, because we didn’t stick with it. But we’re not a failure. That’s the cumulative effect of mismatched health attempts never set up for success in the first place.
There’s even a name for this: learned inefficacy—the belief that change isn’t possible because we’ve “failed” too many times. But we didn’t fail.
We were set up to fail.
Why So Many of Our Best Health Improvement Efforts Fail
Recent Pew Research from January 2024 provides insight into how this dynamic plays out on a national scale. About 28% of U.S. adults made a New Year’s resolution this year, and not surprisingly, health topped the list: exercising more, eating better, and losing weight were the big three. Yet, as we’ve seen year after year, most resolutions start strong and collapse before February is even half over.
This pattern holds true for health programs as well, even those sponsored by employers and backed with serious evidence and resources. Diabetes prevention programs, for instance, often offer participants everything they could ask for—coaching, community forums, personalized diet plans, scales that sync to an app—but still see the majority of participants drop out.
The reality is that you can't just expect a significant health change to fit seamlessly into your life casually. These programs are disruptive by nature. But the ones who stay with it are usually the ones who made the conscious decision beforehand to truly commit to the effort.
Random programs and offerings postured to improve your health like never before sell you a promise, but they don’t tell you that they take consistency, and sometimes they take a lot of work. Are you willing to do the work before you embark on the program? Are you willing to pay the financial and time cost? If the answer is 'maybe,' then wait and keep reading.
The Three Questions That Everyone Should Ask
It’s time we establish a filter before we're tempted, and we can do this by asking three questions before deciding to start a new health intervention.
#1 Question: Am I truly ready to give this my best effort right now?
This doesn't mean promising perfection. It means an honest self-assessment of what level of energy, attention, and commitment we can realistically bring to the table. If you know life is about to get chaotic with a major work project or a family move, it may not be the best time to dive into a high-commitment program, let alone even taking a supplement. On the other hand, if you have some breathing room and a clear intention, that’s a green light to move forward with conviction.
If you find that you’re not ready to embark on the full program or intervention, think about one small step you can take today to get started on the right track. Could you just cut back a little on the calories, or increase a food that provides the same benefits as the supplement?
#2 Question: Have I considered the key factors that will impact my success?
It’s vital to run a quick check through a framework I call CREECS, which stands for Cost, Risk, Effort, Effectiveness, Commitment, and Support. What will this program really cost me—in terms of money, yes, but also time, energy, and emotional bandwidth? What are the risks if I begin but don’t follow through? (For example, feeling discouraged or demoralized can carry its own health consequences.)
How much effort will it demand on a daily or weekly basis? How effective do you think this program will be for someone like me, given my unique situation? Am I ready to commit to it fully, even if my motivation wanes? And finally, do I have enough support—from family, friends, or professionals—to stick with it through inevitable bumps in the road?
Just by asking these questions, you’re reasoning through the option to join or pass - and for good reasons. This alone will increase your chances of being successful if you join.
#3 Question: Is this aligned with the way I want to live and manage my health?
Does this choice feel like "me," or does it feel like someone else's idea of what I should do? Our health philosophy is a personal approach to health that outlines how you want to think about, approach, and engage with your health. It is not borrowed from a podcaster, influencer, or well-meaning friend who swears by the latest miracle cure. It’s yours—crafted from your values, your logic, your lived experience, and your understanding of what health means to you.
If a program or intervention feels like a good fit with your approach, it’s worth considering seriously. If not, think about what it was that appealed to you. Is there an approach that might better align with your unique health perspective?
If you decide to join the program after thinking it through, wait a minute longer and keep reading. I want to help you set yourself up for success using some strategic mental moves. The first is going in with a vision to succeed.
Join With a Vision to Succeed
When it comes to why we join programs in the first place, our feelings about it range on a broad spectrum. Sometimes we feel genuinely ready to make a change. We feel it in our bones: it’s time.
But often, we say "yes" for far less intentional reasons. Maybe an employer sent a cheerful email about a free program. Maybe a friend forwards a link with lots of exclamation points, or perhaps we see an ad during a moment of low self-esteem and think, “Sure, why not?”
The reality is that you can't just expect a significant health change to fit seamlessly into your life casually. These programs are disruptive by nature. They require time, energy, emotional investment, and a well-planned action. Without a moment of thoughtful evaluation before signing up, we set ourselves up for a cycle of hope, struggle, and eventual dropout. It's not just discouraging—it can be costly to our feelings of ability and hope. This is a setup for discouragement, both personally and for the organizations offering these programs.
So, how can we give ourselves a better chance of succeeding before we even begin?
How to Increase Your Chance of Success
If you’re determined to try a health intervention, I suggest you decide a few things first. The first is asking three questions, which were just covered. The second is innovative thinking. This is how we ensure that when we decide to embark on a health intervention or program, we set ourselves up for success.
🤨Think “if-then” statements.
The first approach is to create simple backup plans upfront using “if-then” statements. When you plan ahead with clear “if-then” moves ("If X happens, then I’ll do Y"), you’re creating a shortcut past hesitation. Instead of debating with yourself in the moment, the decision is already made. Research shows this simple hack—known as an implementation intention—can make you two to three times more likely to reach your goal.
For example, if you’re considering a walking challenge through your workplace, your plan might be: “If it’s raining in the morning, then I’ll walk after lunch instead.” Or, “If I don’t feel motivated after work, then I’ll listen to my favorite podcast while walking to make it enjoyable.”
These tiny pre-decisions remove the mental friction that usually derails good intentions. You’re not waiting for motivation—you’ve already decided what to do when obstacles show up.
🏃🏽♀️➡️ Make it hard to leave the commitment.
Make it uncomfortable to back out of your commitment. These are called commitment devices, and they can help future-proof your good intentions before life throws its usual curveballs.
Before starting a new health program, ask yourself: What could I put in place now that would make quitting inconvenient or following through more likely? For example, if you’re signing up for a coaching program, you might pre-pay for three months instead of doing a pay-as-you-go plan. If you’re starting a group fitness challenge, text a friend and say, “I’ll Venmo you $50 if I don’t finish this.”
Even something as simple as publicly stating your goal to a coworker—"I committed to doing this 8-week program, and I’m really going to follow through"—adds just enough social pressure to keep you accountable.
You don’t have to set up elaborate traps for yourself. The idea is to create just enough friction to make quitting feel like more effort than continuing. When you use commitment devices strategically, you give yourself a head start—and reduce the number of times you’ll need to renegotiate with your excuses.
✅ Do a motivation alignment check.
If you choose the health intervention yourself, you’re more likely to follow through. This is because you've already put in the work to find them. You’ve thought through it.
This is the heart of Self-Determination Theory, a body of research that shows people are more motivated and resilient when their actions come from within, not from external pressure. For example, if your employer offers you a program and you don’t have to find the program yourself, it’s less likely you’ll finish the program. Why? Because you didn’t have to be motivated to see it and do the work to determine if it was something you needed. You’re being told it’s something you need, and it skips the step of having to figure the need out yourself.
Before saying yes to a program, ponder if this is something you’re doing because it fell into your lap, or if it's because this is something you’ve been looking for. Maybe your workplace is offering a new meditation course, but mindfulness has never really resonated with you. Yet you’ve been looking for a way to get outside and walk more. The walking group is closer to what you’ve been looking for. If you choose the walking group, you’re more likely to stick with it, while the mindfulness class will likely slip by the wayside. While this isn’t always true, the more your choice reflects your personal interests, lifestyle, and health values, the more likely you are to stick with it and enjoy the process.
This is why it's okay to say “no thanks' to programs that don’t feel like a good fit or you feel passive about. You're not failing—you’re filtering. And that’s a strategic, empowered move. When you choose from alignment, you’re not just chasing results—you’re creating sustainable change that actually feels good to pursue.
Pre-Deciding Creates a Mental Contract With Yourself
When you take the time to answer these questions honestly and stay committed to a program, you dramatically increase your odds of success. This creates a kind of mental contract with yourself that says, "I am not just dipping my toe in. I am intentionally stepping in with both feet, knowing what this will require, and why I’m doing it."
Pre-decision is powerful. It moves you from reacting to opportunities to thoughtfully choosing the ones that deserve your time, money, and energy. It transforms health actions from "I'll try" to "I've decided."
Adopt the "Is This for Me?" Mindset
Ultimately, adopting a mindset of "Is this for me?" can save you from a thousand small disappointments and help you focus your energy on what will truly move the needle in your health journey.
It’s not about being skeptical of everything—it’s about being strategic. Not everything that works for someone else will work for you, and not every opportunity is the right one at the right time.
Pre-deciding helps prevent regret, protects your time and resources, and primes you for real, lasting success. Whether it's an employer-sponsored program or a supplement being marketed through a friend's enthusiastic social media post, pause. Think. Ask the right questions.
If you do, you won’t just be trying another health program; you’ll be creating a health strategy that is more likely to really improve your health because you’ll be fully invested in whatever you do.
See you on Thursday, health heroes!
Dr. Alice
A little more about Dr. Alice Burron and Strategic Action Health:
Dr. Burron is a co-founder of Strategic Action Health, dedicated to helping organizations help their employees make better health decisions. Come check us out here!
Catch us on Instagram: @the.health.navigator and @dr_burron
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Health Shift: Your Strategic Guide to Making Strategic Health Decisions book will officially launch on May 17, 2025! Mark your calendars! And if you’re in Cheyenne, join us for our party at Blacktooth Brewery. Have a beer on us! More information is coming soon.