Bad habits. We all have them. From forgetting to floss to forgetting to let grandma out of the cupboard, they exert a negative influence on our daily lives.
They say a habit takes 21 days to form. So if you start now, by the end of the month you'll have new ones... right? Well... no. Most people sabotage their efforts before that happens.
When starting or breaking any habit we tend to tell our conscious mind we are going to change and it’s for LIFE. On the other hand, if you tell yourself you want to try something for a finite 21 days it seems a more manageable goal. It might sound a little strange to ‘talk to your conscious’... but what I mean is we all have conversations with ourselves inside our heads - should I go to the pub or should I not, should I go to the gym or should I not? There are a hundred conversations we have with ourselves every day.
Tell yourself (your conscious brain) that you are going to try it for 21 days. When you have completed 21 days, your neural pathways will have formed already and you will more than likely continue with your new habit. Just take it one day at a time!
So this sounds pretty straight forward... why do people fail to make the change?Too difficult. People set out with a lot of ambition and enthusiasm, and start out with a big goal. “I’m going to go to the gym for an hour a day!” or “I’m going to run 30 minutes every day!” The problem is that the goal is too difficult to sustain for very long.
Too many goals. Often we set out to do too much. We want to stop smoking, and stop drinking coffee, and make healthy choices, and do our tax on time, and lift weights. Those are multiple goals, and you cannot focus on what is the most important if you’re trying to do all the others at the same time. Or you might start with one goal, but then get caught up in another goal (to stop procrastinating, for example), and lose focus on the first one.
Not enough motivation. It’s not a lack of discipline, it’s a lack of motivation. You need to find your reason to keep going!
So how does one combat these hurdles...? There are four tools in your artillery.
1. Set one easy, specific, measurable goal
Write this down. If you don’t write it down, it’s not important. Don’t set a difficult goal. Set one that is super, super easy. Five minutes of exercise a day. You can do that. Work your way to 10 minutes after a month. Make it easy to start with, so you can build your habit, then gradually increase. Be specific, what activity are you going to do, at what time of day, and where? Don’t just say “exercise” or “I’m going to walk”. Make it an appointment you can’t miss. Stick to one goal for at least a month. Two months if you can bear it. Don’t start up a second goal during that 30-day period. If you do, you are threatening the success of your original goal.
2. Keep a daily journal
As you record each day, you will start to see your progress, and it will motivate you to keep going. And you have to make it a habit to log it right away. Don’t put it off, and say you’ll do it before you go to bed. As soon as you’re done working out, log it. Just the date, time, and what you did.
3. Tell others about your progress
Do it on your blog, an online forum, with your spouse, friends, family, a workout partner, a coach, a group or a class. However you set it up, make it part of the process that you have to report your daily workout to other people. It could be through email, or the phone, or just by telling your co-workers what you did this morning. But be sure that they know your goal, and that you are going to report to them every day.
4. Motivation - Keep it up!
If you miss two consecutive workouts, you need to look at why, and add a new motivation. Rewards, more public pressure, inspiration, whatever it takes. Think of ways to reinforce your new habits in a positive way. I read of a woman who would take her own extra soft luxury towels to the gym and put on her favourite scent as soon as she finished her workout and stepped out of a hot shower.
What are my goals?
• Get up every day (besides Sunday) at 6:30am and do some form of exercise before anything else. Even if it's only a walk. Every second day, weights.
• Consistently make healthy food choices for the next 12 weeks.
What is my motivation?
• I want to wake up and feel great at the start of each day
• My dogs get a nice walk
• Each day I'm getting fitter
• I'll have more energy to get through the working day
• I want to achieve a goal and be disciplined enough to see it through
• Feel great in my own skin
• Do something healthy that's just for me
Don't wait until Monday to start hitting your targets, start today!
3 comments:
Very interesting thoughts Louise, but habits (good or bad) seem to be something that comes easy for each one of us. It’s almost a part of our dna and that’s why it’s so difficult to change them. Judging by myself, all of my habits are things that I used to do for ever and I don’t even know how and when I begun to. One way to start something that seems to be difficult though is to do it with a person you love. That gives you a good motive I think. Keep up the good work.
NikNik.
Ps. My english are not very good because I’ m Greek but I’ m trying to improve.
Great idea IF they want to change too! You say habits are part of DNA, that's not true... That's an excuse. Each and every day we make choices. We can fall back on the established pattern or challenge it. We CAN break free if we put our minds to it. Thanks for your input NikNik, look forward to hearing more from you.
By saying that it's almost part of our dna i wanted to point how difficult it is to change them, not impossible though. It' s not very easy for me to follow blogs in english, but i'm trying. I would even try to write in english too in my blog in the future so that foreigners can read my thoughts. If you have Greek friends they can translate..hehe..It's a beautiful language after all.
NikNik.
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