“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.”
I love this quote because it's the simplest way to explain what I see over and over with clients and in my own life: The small, consistent things we do add up over time. Not right away, not in a week, maybe not in a month, but eventually, and exponentially.
If you get frustrated when change feels slow, this is for you.
Your health is a high-yield savings account. And every healthy choice is a deposit.
One salad doesn't change your life. One workout doesn't either. But you already know that.
The problem is that most people deposit and immediately check the balance. "Why don't I see results yet?"
Because that's not how compounding works, you don't just drop $5 into a savings account and expect to retire.
The same goes for movement, nutrition, sleep, and stress management. You're not doing it for today's payoff. You're doing it because these tiny deposits build into something bigger—and stronger—than you can imagine when you're just starting out.
It works both ways.
Here's the less sexy part: compound interest works in reverse, too.
Skipping workouts, stress-eating through the week, staying up too late—none of these "ruin" anything on their own. But when they become the default? You're making withdrawals. It’s like taking a loan against your 401K—you might get a short-term benefit, but you’ll pay for it later, with interest and taxes.
And just like with finances, most people don't notice the damage until the overdraft fees hit. One day, you wake up wondering, "Why do I feel so off?" But it didn't happen overnight. It was compounding while you weren't looking.
You won't see results right away. That's how you know it's working.
In the beginning, your hard work feels invisible—but maybe you're just measuring the wrong things. That’s where most people quit.
They say, "I've been ‘so good’ this week (or month), and nothing's happening."
Yep. That's how this works.
Compound interest feels like nothing's happening—until it isn't. Pushing harder before you’ve mastered the basics? That’s like turning up the oven because your cake isn’t baking fast enough.
If you keep showing up, practicing the habits, even when you aren’t seeing immediate results in the mirror, the change will eventually come. But it only happens for those who don't give up while in the invisible stage.
There's no finish line, just momentum.
You don't make a bunch of good choices and then coast on them forever. Just like investing, you've got to keep adding.
This is why crash diets and 75-day hard all-or-nothing programs don't usually stick. They're a short burst of deposits followed by months of withdrawal.
Want long-term results? Build a system that makes it easy to keep adding—meals you actually like, workouts you don't dread, habits that work with your real life. You don’t plan health and fitness habits for the life you wish you had. You build it for the one you’re in.
Mastery Doesn't Happen on the First Day
When I was in elementary school, my mom told me that on the first day of school, I'd open my new textbook straight to the last page, take one look, and come home crying because I thought it was too hard.
I looked at that last page and instantly convinced myself I'd never be able to do it—even before the class had started. Because from the page one perspective, it looked impossible.
It’s the same thing we do with habits. We scroll online and see people running marathons, tracking every macro, or meditating for thirty minutes a day—and suddenly we’re flipping to the last page on day one, thinking “I’ll never be able to do that.” But you’re not supposed to start there. You work through the book, one lesson at a time. You make mistakes, ask questions, learn skills, and build confidence. By the time you get to the last page? You're ready. You've grown into it.
That’s what consistent habits do. They help you become the kind of person who can take on goals that once felt out of reach.
Your habits are shaping your identity. Whether you realize it or not.
James Clear also says, every time you make a choice, you cast a vote for the kind of person you're becoming.
Go for a walk when you don't feel like it? That's a vote for "I'm someone who moves my body."
Make a protein-rich lunch instead of hitting the drive-through. That's a vote for "I fuel myself well because my health is important to me."
You don't need to be perfect, not even close. You just need enough votes to tip the scales in your favor.
Keep making deposits.
Don't wait until motivation strikes, don't wait until Monday, and don't wait until the first of the month. Just start making small, boring, unsexy deposits.
Action breeds motivation—not the other way around. You don’t wait until you feel ready. You start, and the momentum shows up after.
It won’t look like much today. But it builds—faster than you think. Especially when you stop chasing the result and start making it part of who you are.
And unlike your bank account, the interest you earn from taking care of your health shows up in your energy, confidence, strength, and ability to live well.
That's another kind of wealth worth building.
If you want support building those deposits into a system that actually sticks, that's what I do.
As a board-certified health coach, personal trainer, and workplace wellness consultant, I help people and teams build strength in their bodies and confidence in their habits without extreme programs or all-or-nothing thinking.
If you're ready to start showing up for your future self, reach out or check out my current coaching options. One small step today. Compound interest tomorrow.
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Questions? I’d love to help.
I am a board certified health coach, personal trainer, and running coach, dedicated to helping you get strong, body and mind!
In this blog post, learn how to leverage your daily habits like a high-yield investment account—even if you’re bad at math like me. Just like compound interest, small consistent actions add up to strength, energy, and health that pays off for years to come.