When Change Feels Impossible

It’s not a lack of willpower, it’s your brain protecting its energy budget.

Your brain is many things. Curious. Adaptable. Brilliant.

But above all? Economical.

It doesn’t want to spend energy unless it has to. Not because it’s lazy, but because energy is precious, and biology doesn’t waste resources on maybes.

And change? That’s a maybe.

It asks your brain to pay attention. To slow down. To choose differently when autopilot would be faster, cheaper, and already wired in.

So when you're trying to shift a habit, eating differently, thinking differently, showing up differently, what you're really asking for is an energy investment.

And your brain wants a damn good reason before it signs off.

It’s not resisting because it doesn’t want you to grow. It’s resisting because rewiring takes work. Not just emotional effort, but actual biological fuel.

The Brain’s Design: Predictable Over Perfect

Your brain has one core job: survival. Not happiness. Not efficiency. Not even growth.

And to do that job, it prioritises two things above all else:

• Predictability

• Energy conservation

This means it’s constantly scanning: Is this safe? Is this known? Can I do this with minimal effort?

Even if what’s “known” isn’t serving you anymore, your brain still prefers the familiar. Because familiar means fewer decisions, less risk, less metabolic load.

The Brain’s Energy Budget

Despite your brain being only about 2% of your body weight, it uses up to 20% of your body’s total energy at rest. And it doesn't spend that energy equally.

It has systems, literally networks of neurons, that are designed to conserve cognitive effort.

The brain does this by:

• Shifting repetitive tasks to automatic systems (basal ganglia)

• Filtering out non-essential stimuli (via the reticular activating system)

• Preferring decisions based on past outcomes (pattern recognition = less thinking)

Think of it like a control tower that runs thousands of systems at once. If you try to reroute one plane, you have to shut down another channel to focus. It costs attention. It costs energy. It interrupts the flow.

That’s what change does. It lights up parts of the brain that aren’t used to talking to each other.

The Inner Conversation of Change

Let’s say you decide to change your routine. Wake up earlier. Go for a walk or the gym. Stop scrolling. Ask for what you need.

Here’s what happens inside:

• Prefrontal Cortex: “We’ve made a decision. This is logical. Let’s go.”

• Limbic System: “This is new. This is uncertain. I’m uncomfortable.”

• Amygdala: “Uncertainty? That sounds like danger. Let’s trigger some stress chemistry, just in case.”

• Basal Ganglia: “Why are we doing something different? We had a system. We liked the system.”

• Hypothalamus: “Cool, cortisol incoming. Let's make you reach for something familiar so you feel safe again.”

This is not sabotage. This is a system trying to stay alive with the least disruption.

And it will always default to efficiency over transformation. Unless you teach it otherwise.

Mitochondria, Methylation, and Mental Energy

Change takes energy, and energy depends on more than willpower. It depends on your mitochondria.

These tiny organelles are where your body makes energy. They take the food you eat, the air you breathe, and, with the right nutrients, convert them into ATP: the biological currency your brain runs on.

And methylation? That’s part of the equation too. It’s a process your body uses to:

• Build and break down neurotransmitters

• Clear out stress signals

• Repair DNA

• And yes, help mitochondria function better

It’s all one elegant biological loop:

• If methylation is sluggish, neurotransmitter balance suffers.

• If mitochondria are depleted, brain energy plummets.

• If brain energy is low, change feels harder than it should.

Which means supporting these processes isn't just about biochemistry, it’s about capacity. The capacity to think clearly. Feel regulated. Try again.

So if your brain feels foggy, flat, or fried, the question isn’t:

“Why can’t I change?” It’s: “What’s draining the system?” and “What can I feed to help it refuel?”

Brain Energy Support Table: Food-Based Helpers

Food	Why It Helps	Key Nutrients / Compounds
Eggs	Support methylation, brain structure, and neurotransmitter production	Choline, B12, selenium
Broccoli	Protect mitochondria from oxidative stress, Nrf2 activated	Sulforaphane
Spinach	Fuels methylation and antioxidant support	Folate, magnesium, antioxidants
Pumpkin seeds	Provide essential minerals for mitochondrial enzymes and neurotransmitter balance	Zinc, magnesium
Salmon / Sardines	Anti-inflammatory fats that support mitochondrial membrane integrity and neural function	Omega-3s (DHA/EPA), B12, CoQ10
Beetroot	Improves blood flow, oxygen delivery, and methylation pathways	Nitrates, betaine, folate
Blueberries	Protect mitochondria from oxidative stress and support neuroplasticity	Anthocyanins, polyphenols
Dark chocolate	Enhances blood flow and mitochondrial biogenesis	Flavanols, magnesium
Avocado	Brain-protective fats and B vitamins to support steady energy	MUFAs, B5, B6, folate

These foods aren’t a prescription or another thing to get “right".

They’re options, tools you can reach for to support the system that’s already working hard for you.

Not every food will suit every body. So take what fits. Leave what doesn’t. And remember, this isn’t about perfection. It’s about capacity, rhythm, and learning how to feed what’s asking for support.

Your Brain Is Plastic

This resistance isn’t permanent. Your brain is not fixed. It’s plastic, meaning it’s shaped by use, attention, and repetition.

And the more you walk a new path, the stronger that neural track becomes. What once felt foreign can become fluent. But it takes gentle consistency, not force.

So What Actually Helps?

Let’s bring it back to the body. Because all of this is happening inside yours.

Repetition

The saying goes, neurons that fire together, wire together. Each repetition strengthens a new circuit. Each moment of “this instead of that” makes the new choice more automatic.

Anchor it to identity

Your brain loves coherence. So when change is linked to identity (“I’m someone who takes care of my nervous system”) instead of pressure (“I need to be better”), it feels less like a threat.

Make it safe

When your system feels safe, your prefrontal cortex stays online. Your body says yes more often when it’s not being forced. Gentleness isn’t weakness, it’s access.

Link it to rhythm

Linking a new habit to something you already do (after tea, before bed) helps the basal ganglia absorb it without argument.

Use curiosity

This is big. When you ask, “What would happen if…” instead of “I have to…”  you shift from control to exploration. And that’s a state the brain loves.

In Real Life, It Might Look Like:

• Eating one grounding breakfast each week that actually makes you feel good

• Going for a walk not because you “should,” but because your system likes rhythm

• Starting your day with water, or a breath, or a pause, not because it’s a rule, but because it reminds you you’re in charge of the signal

• Telling yourself: I’m not trying to change everything, I’m trying to create a better conversation with my body

The Bottom Line

Your resistance to change is not a flaw. It’s a feature of a highly evolved, energy-conserving system.

But it’s also not the whole story.

Because your brain isn’t just efficient, it’s adaptive. And with enough rhythm, safety, and repetition, it learns to trust new paths.

So go gently. Repeat often. And when change feels hard, don’t ask “What’s wrong with me?” Ask: What is my brain trying to protect? What new signal can I send today?

Let that be the next step.