LEARN 8 TOP TIPS FOR CREATING HEALTHY HABITS THAT STICK
HOW TO BUILD HEALTHY HABITS
TOP TIPS
Get clear on your 'why'
The clearer you get on why you want to eat healthier or get in shape, the easier it'll be. So before you tackle a healthy habit, ask yourself why it's important. Is it to boost your confidence? Spice up your love life? Or have the energy to keep up with your kids? Whatever your why is, keep it front and center. It's the secret to keeping your motivation up -- so your habit will stick.
Start Small
Healthy habits happen step-by-step... not in one fell swoop. If you overhaul everything all at once, it's easy to get overwhelmed. So start small. If you've been a fast food junkie for years, don't expect to go full Paleo overnight. Instead, try eating 3 vegetables a day. And if you're used to being sedentary, take a daily 10-minute walk, rather than signing up for a marathon. Starting small will set you up for success in the long run.
Shift your identity
James Clear, author of Atomic Habits said, "True behavior change is identity change." So if you want your healthy habit to stick, you need to change your story. If your story is "I'm lazy," then swap that story out for "I'm active." Start seeing yourself as who you want to become. The more you visualize your new identity, the more natural it'll feel. And each time you stick to your healthy habits, that identity grows stronger and stronger.
Change your environment
Your environment can either make or break you. To set up your environment for success, remove any barriers to good habits or place a hurdle in the way of bad ones. For example, you can set your workout clothes the night before to make exercise easier. Or if you crave sweets, do a pantry purge to get rid of any tempting junk foods.
Be specific
When your goals are too broad, it's hard to tell if you achieved them. So be specific! Instead of saying "I'll eat healthy," say, "I'll bring a salad for lunch every day this week." And instead of saying "I'll exercise regularly," say "I'll go to the gym 3 times this week.
Stack habits
One of the easiest ways to build healthy habits is to tie a new habit to an existing one. For example, if you're trying to start a meditation practice, try meditating for 5 minutes after you brush your teeth in the morning. Or if you're a regular coffee drinker, try writing in your gratitude journal while you sip your morning java.
Make unhealthy habits harder
Old habits can die hard. So to ditch your unhealthy habits, make them harder to do. If don't have time to exercise because you're scrolling Instagram after work, put your phone on airplane mode until after your workout. And if Netflix binging is leading to late-night snacking, unplug the TV after dinner or hide the remote in a drawer.
Reward yourself
Each time you achieve a milestone, celebrate! Rewarding yourself for a job well done helps you stay motivated to keep pushing forward. The trick is to choose a healthy reward. So say you've walked 15 minutes every day for 30 days straight. Reward yourself with some new sneakers. And if you've hit the gym 3 times this week, reward yourself with a lavender Epsom salt bath.