You’ve probably been in awe of people with strong habits, the
people who wake up early, exercise regularly, eat well, and are successful at
the end of the day. The main thing they’ll credit for their success is their
habits and routines.
WHAT ARE HABITS? Habits aren’t active choices you make. They’re
automatic responses. Deciding to go to the gym today isn’t a habit but going
without giving it a second thought is. Habits
aren’t easily labeled as “good” or “bad.” Many bad habits make you feel good.
It’s more accurate to say that bad habits keep you from who you want to be, and
good habits will help you get there. Habit
formation is based on the discoveries of Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist.
While researching how dogs salivate when fed, he accidentally discovered the
concept of conditioning. The
famous experiment of Pavlov’s dogs in the 1890s revealed that you can train
your brain to respond a certain way to specific stimuli. Because a bell was
rung at dinnertime, dogs started drooling at the sound of the bell in
preparation for their dinner. For example,
you may want to link the smell of lavender with bedtime. You can use a lavender
room spray (stimulus), get into bed, and go to sleep (outcome). When you do
this often enough, you train yourself to get sleepy when you smell lavender. The
more you can automate your decision-making, the more time you can give to what
matters. Habits help you become the person you want to be. Putting together your habits makes a routine.
Routines and habits determine your behavior. Your behavior determines your
identity.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO FORM A HABIT? It takes as long as it needs to
take. The easier and more desirable the habit is, the quicker it will form.
More difficult habits take longer. On average, it takes about 66 days for a
habit to form. It’s less about
the amount of time it takes and more about the repetition. A habit you practice
every day will form much faster than a weekly habit.
START WITH SMALL HABITS: As with any new pursuit, you need to start small.
Changing your behavior feels like a huge task. That’s why vague resolutions like
“losing weight” are doomed to fail. The
best place to start with a new habit is the smallest place. Think of the
smallest possible thing you can do toward your habit and master it. Make it
impossible not to do. If
your goal is to work out and lose weight, don’t start by following a
workout plan. Instead, think about steps like:
- Put on your
workout clothes
- Pack a gym
bag
- Go to the
gym (but don’t work out)
- Walk for 2
minutes
Set your expectations small to
match the first step. If you only go to the gym, but that was your only
intention, you did it! Do it a few more times for good measure, and then take
the next step.
OTHER TIPS FOR FORMING HABITS:
USE YOUR ENVIRONMENT: If you want to eat
more fruit, put fruit in plain sight on the counter. If you want to exercise
more, keep your workout gear within reach. If you want to read more, always
carry a book with you. To
break a bad habit, do the opposite: Make it harder to do. Don’t keep soda or
snacks around the house if you’re trying to lose weight.
STACK HABITS: Try pinning a new
habit to one you already do by using the formula, “When I do X, I will then do
Y.” When you eat a meal, go for a walk afterward. When you take a restroom
break, drink a glass of water.
MAKE IT ENJOYABLE: If you dread working
out, try listening to your favorite podcast while you do it. If you hate
vegetables, find tasty recipes that make you want to eat them. It’s hard to
form a habit if you hate doing it. For
a bad habit, make it so you don’t want to do it. If you’re trying to stop
smoking, think of the good things that will happen when you quit. Make the act
of smoking undesirable by comparison.
CELEBRATE YOUR WINS: There’s no better way to enjoy forming a
habit than to celebrate them. Set up a reward system for when you do your habit
every day, or a long-term reward if you do the habit for a week.
BE UNDERSTANDING: It’s OK to miss a day. There will be
roadblocks during the process. Let it pass and try again tomorrow. You can take
these moments and reevaluate your system. What caused you to miss a day? Is
there a way to keep that from happening again? What can you do differently? No
matter what, keep going.
SOURCES:
British Journal of General Practice:
"Making health habitual: the psychology of ‘habit-formation’ and general
practice."
Clear, J. Atomic Habits, Penguin Random
House, 2018.
Harvard Business Review: “What Does It Really Take to
Build a New Habit?”
Iowa University Human Resources: “Habit Science.”
NPR: “'Tiny Habits' Are The Key To Behavioral Change.”
SimplePsychology: “Classical Conditioning,” “Pavlov's
Dogs.”
Much Love, Dr.Shermaine, #InformativeRead #PleaseShare
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The Goal
is to Always Make You Aware of What Concerns Your Body, Soul and Spirit, So You
Can Have Open, Honest and Frequent Discussions With Your Physicians and
Counselors. You Can’t Treat or Cure What You Don’t Know is Sick.
"It's
Not Selfish to Love Yourself, Take Care of Yourself and to Make Your Happiness
a Priority. It's a Necessity." (Mandy Hale)
"Self-Care is Not Selfish. You Cannot Serve From an Empty Vessel."
(Eleanor Brown)
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