|
New year resolutions – creating new healthy habits
As one year draws to a close and we start another, some of us might have wanted to start afresh with a new year resolution. Resolutions are a great motivator for changing our attitude or behaviour or starting healthy habits. But we all know that regardless of how much goodwill we might put into it initially, sometimes these resolutions are hard to keep up throughout the year.
This is mainly because to make a random action become a habit takes a bit more than just a new year’s wish. For it to become a habit of your day-to-day life you will need some persistence and continuity to sustain it throughout a period of time.
Remember that despite this seeming a bit more difficult it doesn’t mean it is impossible. In fact, it is very possible that you have already created healthy habits without noticing them.
Think about something healthy you do naturally in your everyday life and how you came to have this habit. Nobody was born knowing to clean their teeth daily, it took some time, maybe a nagging parent and a lot of practice for us to do it naturally and without thinking.
With this in mind, here are some good tips on how to create a new healthy habit and keep up the motivation. Remember, a dream without a plan is just a wish.
1.- Set a specific and clear goal or resolution. It will work better if you make it tangible and clear. It is all very well wanting to lose weight or being more active, but they are not very tangible. How about eating x number of vegetables a day or going for a x minute walk x times a week.
2.- Start with tiny habits to make the new habit as easy as possible in the beginning. Small steps are best for us to keep motivated daily as we achieve them easily. To promote better sleep, try creating the habit of reducing screen time by leaving your phone outside your bedroom before you go to sleep. Small enough?
3.- You will need to repeat the action or resolution in the same situation. It is important that something about the setting where you perform this action is consistent so that it can cue the action. Rituals are very important. Maybe setting your daily positive affirmation whilst you brush your teeth in the morning. Over time it will start to happen more easily and require less effort.
4.- Allow plenty of time for the habit to form, some studies have found that it requires between 18 to 254 days for an action to become a habit, that’s an average of 66 days. This sounds like a big number but in comparison to our lifetime, it isn’t really that much!
5.- Journal it, keep a track of how far you’ve got. This will help your motivation and establish benchmarks. For example, keep a track of the days you have gone to sleep early or gone for a walk. Remember that habits form faster when we do them more often.
Finally, you don’t have to wait until next new year to start a healthy habit!
|
