Why Taking Care of Your Health Feels Harder Than It Used To

If you look at photos from the 1970s, one thing that stands out pretty quickly is that most people were leaner than they are today, and not just a select few or the obviously athletic, but the majority of adults, kids, and older adults alike. So, this wasn’t unusual, it was the norm.

In fact, in 1970, about 13% of U.S. adults were considered obese, whereas today that number is over 40%, which represents a significant shift in a relatively short period of time. And while it’s tempting to explain that change by saying people today simply lack discipline, that explanation doesn’t hold up very well under closer inspection.

Because the people in those older photos weren’t especially disciplined either. They weren’t tracking calories, following structured workout programs, avoiding entire food groups, or experimenting with fasting protocols. They were eating foods that would look familiar today—meat, potatoes, bread, desserts, soda—and yet their overall health outcomes were very different.

What Actually Changed

The most meaningful difference isn’t any single food or habit, but the environment those habits existed within. Fifty years ago, most meals were prepared at home on a regular basis, not occasionally, and eating out was less frequent; when it did happen, portion sizes were smaller and the experience itself was more contained.

Food also wasn’t as constantly available, nor was it designed to be eaten mindlessly throughout the day. There was more built-in structure around eating, with three meals a day being typical, and snacking between meals wasn’t as common—not because people were trying to restrict themselves, but because there simply weren’t as many convenient options available at all times. Hunger between meals was normal, and people generally waited until the next one.

Movement looked different as well. It wasn’t something most people scheduled into their day because it was already part of it, woven into daily life through walking, more physically demanding household tasks, and jobs that required being on your feet. Kids spent more time outside, often for hours at a time, moving without any real awareness that it “counted” as exercise. None of this required intention; it was simply how life worked.

When the Environment Shifted

Over time, that environment gradually changed in ways that, individually, didn’t seem dramatic but collectively reshaped daily life. Food became more convenient, more processed, and more readily available, while portion sizes increased, often without people fully noticing. Snacking became normalized and eventually expected, and movement became something you had to plan for rather than something that happened automatically.

Each of these changes on its own might not seem particularly significant, but together, over years and decades, they created a very different set of conditions. In many ways, taking care of your health used to be the path of least resistance, whereas now, for many people, it’s the opposite.

The Influence of Constant Exposure

Another shift that’s easy to overlook is how often we’re now exposed to food, even when we’re not actively seeking it out. Television, smartphones, computers, and advertising have made food a constant presence in the background of daily life, whether it’s commercials, social media posts, cooking shows, or even subtle product placement.

This kind of exposure doesn’t just inform choices—it shapes them. Seeing food frequently can increase cravings, normalize more frequent eating, and make certain options feel more appealing, even when you weren’t hungry to begin with. Over time, that repeated exposure can gradually influence both how often you eat and what you choose, without it feeling like a deliberate decision.

It’s a very different experience from a time when food was mostly encountered at meals, rather than throughout the entire day.

Why It’s Hard to Go Against the Crowd

There’s also a social side to all of this that makes change more challenging than it might seem on the surface. Human behavior is strongly influenced by the people around us, and most of us have a natural tendency to align with what feels normal within our environment.

When the default around you is frequent snacking, eating out, or skipping movement, doing something different can feel uncomfortable—not necessarily because of the behavior itself, but because it sets you apart. You might feel like you’re the only one making different choices, or that you’re drawing attention to yourself, even if no one is saying anything directly.

In those moments, it’s often easier to go along with the group than to stick with what you had planned, especially when the difference between the two is subtle but consistent. Over time, that pressure to fit in can pull you back toward old habits, even when your intentions are clear.

Why Discipline Feels So Difficult Now

When you combine all of these factors—greater convenience, constant exposure to food, and social environments that often reinforce less supportive habits—it becomes easier to understand why relying on discipline alone can feel so difficult to sustain. If your environment consistently encourages certain behaviors, you’re not just making isolated decisions; you’re navigating a system that’s nudging you in a particular direction.

That doesn’t mean change is out of reach, but it does mean the approach has to adjust. Instead of relying solely on willpower, it becomes more useful to look at the environment itself—not all of it, because you can’t control everything, but the parts that are within your influence.

Shaping Your Environment Today

That might mean keeping certain foods more visible and others less accessible, creating some structure around meals instead of eating continuously throughout the day, or finding small ways to build more movement into your routine so it doesn’t always require a separate block of time and effort.  It might also mean being a bit more intentional about the environments you spend time in, including the people you’re around and the types of content you consume regularly.

None of these changes are dramatic on their own, but they don’t have to be. The goal isn’t to recreate the 1970s; it’s to recognize that the conditions have changed and to respond accordingly. When the environment starts to support the behaviors you’re trying to build, those behaviors tend to require less effort to maintain, and over time, that’s what makes consistency more realistic.