Last week I launched the 5-Day Eating for Happy Hormones Challenge.
It was a great week, and I got to meet with some of you too!
So, thank you.
Basically, over the 5 days of the challenge, we tried on 5 habits related to eating for better health and less belly fat.
And we started with WHY.
I wanted everyone in the challenge to figure out WHY they REALLY wanted to make these changes.
A reason WHY that was meaningful, that connected with their emotions.
And I started the challenge there because I know that’s a powerful way of creating habits that stick.
An EMOTIONAL REASON WHY will get you through hard times.
Because when you want to create or change a habit – eating less, exercising more, quitting smoking,… – you will run into RESISTANCE.
And that strong reason WHY will keep you going…
Even when you don’t feel like it.
Now here are some other ideas for creating changes that stick.
And they’re even backed by science.
(I was inspired by an interview I listened to with behavioral scientist, Katy Milkman, who wrote the book. “How to Change: The Science of Getting From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be.”)
1. Make a PLEDGE
It can be as simple as writing out a commitment or a PLEDGE to honoring your new habit.
“I, Debbie Harbec, commit to….”
Kind of like the idea around the Hippocratic Oath for doctors.
It’s been proven that taking an oath, or making pledges or commitments, actually improves your adherence to the new habit or behavior.
So, writing or speaking your commitment makes you much more likely to stick to it.
2. Make it FUN
A new habit should be FUN.
Or at the very least, enjoyable.
When I work with my clients, especially when it comes to exercise, I help them come up with activities they’ll actually enjoy.
Because I know from experience, that when you don’t ENJOY it, you won’t do it.
Not in the long term.
So, making it FUN or ENJOYABLE is the key to creating a habit you actually WANT to do.
I’ve done this for myself over the past year.
I walk every morning because I LOVE it.
At first, I felt like walking wasn’t good enough.
That I should push myself harder.
And some mornings, I would push myself to run instead of walk.
But I know now that, although I still LOVE running with my friends on the weekend, I prefer walking when I’m on my own.
Especially early in the morning.
It’s a beautiful, calm time of day, and it just fills me up with so much positive energy.
I look forward to doing it every day, and rarely miss.
It’s really made me realize that exercise is much more than just calories burned, or muscle gained, or fat lost.
It’s about feeling good, in my body and my mind.
Exercise has so many benefits, so as long as you’re doing SOMETHING, you’re getting benefit from it.
So, make FUN or ENJOYMENT the priority in the habits you choose.
3. Make it FLEXIBLE
Being too RIGID about doing things in a specific way won’t create a habit that lasts.
So, for example, let’s say you want to create a habit of starting each supper with a salad.
There are 7 suppers in a week.
Now, if you miss a day, you’ll likely feel like you failed, and that could send you into a downward spiral.
And you’ll likely give up on that new habit.
But what if instead, you built in some FLEXIBILITY?
Imagine you gave yourself the option of having a salad with lunch OR supper.
Or, imagine you allowed yourself two emergency passes a week.
So that if, for some reason, you don’t have a have a salad, you can give yourself a pass.
And having that kind of flexibility will keep you going, even when things get tough.
The thing is, we’re all humans, we’re not machines.
If what you build (a habit, a home, …) has to be perfect right out of the gate, it will never be built.
So, give yourself some wiggle room and move forward.
4. Build it in SMALLER steps
Maybe the new habit you want seems like a QUANTUM LEAP from where you are.
For example, if you want to get to bed by 9pm, but you’re currently going to bed at 11pm, it can be really tough to do that in one shot.
So instead, start by going to bed at 10:45pm for a week.
And then 10:30pm the week after that.
And then 10:15pm… until you get to your goal of 9pm.
Yes, you need to factor in extra time, but it definitely beats trying it once or twice and giving up.
To build a habit takes time and energy.
It’s so much each easier to build a house with small bricks, than to build it with giant stones.
By breaking your habit down into smaller steps, you make each step feel more DO-ABLE.
And when things feel do-able, success is so much more likely.
5. Surround yourself with SUPPORT
When you’re creating a new habit, it’s awesome if you can find someone who already practices that habit.
So, if you want to stop eating at night, connect with someone who doesn’t eat at night.
Find out what their evening routine looks like.
Or, if you want to do 10 push ups a day, do them with someone else.
Either in person, or online.
SUPPORT doesn’t just show up, and it’s not always available in the people you live with or are closest to.
Often, you’ve got to go outside your immediate circle, and purposely seek out that SUPPORT.
As I mentioned in a previous post (“Who Are Your Five People?”), the people you surround yourself with matter.
Because your actions and lifestyle are closely aligned with those you spend time with.
So, even if your friends or family can’t support you, hire a coach, or a personal trainer, or nutritionist; or find a group of people doing what you want to do.
Create a team to rally around you, to help lift you up when you feel low, and who know where you’re going and what you need to do to get there.
6. Put MONEY on the line
Studies have shown that we’re more likely to do things we pay for.
And we don’t like to lose money.
So, when you pay for a coach, a trainer, or a course, you’re more likely to show up and do the work.
Or when you have to pay money when you don’t succeed at creating a habit, you’ll think twice before giving up.
Here’s an idea along those lines that can be very effective…
Each day that you do your new habit, you put a pre-determined amount of money in a jar – like 5$.
And you do this for certain amount of time, like 21 days or 66 days (the verdict is still out on how long it takes to form a habit.)
If, however, you miss a day, you must donate the money collected so far to a charity you DON’T believe in.
Yikes!
But also, GENIUS.
Right?
How do you stick to your new habits?
I’d love to know your tips or ideas for making new habits stick.
Because this is where so many of us get stuck (pun intended.)
Either we…
- make them too big
- make them too rigid
- make them feel difficult or unattainable
- don’t get the support we need
- don’t invest in ourselves or in the resources that could help
But we could easily turn all of these things around.
And create habits that last.
For a lifetime.
So, let me know your ideas, and share them here in the comments.
And keep moving forward,
Debbie
P.S. Need help CREATING HABITS that actually last? I’m here for you! Just book a time to talk to me here: https://calendly.com/debbie-harbec-coaching/free-consultation
P.P.S. Fall Yoga is coming online in September. Stay tuned for the details!