Get Back on Track with Healthy Habits

The demands of 2020 have forced us to flex a muscle called “flexibility”.  We’ve had to be flexible in the way we shop, eat, work, learn, teach, exercise, almost everything. Being flexible means facing the unknowns and adapting to change.  For most of us we have been forced to create new routines and new health-promoting habits, which is difficult but extremely important.

A habit is the body’s brilliant way of conserving energy by cutting down on the number of decisions we make every day. When you repeat a habit over and over then the brain strengthens the neural pathways that establish in your brain’s memory.

If you’ve created some negative habits and you’re struggling to change those habits, you are not alone. Here is the good news: you CAN get back on track!

Author Charles Duhigg offers powerful insight about how to break old patterns and make way for new patterns in his book, The Power of Habit. According to his research, habits can be broken down into a loop that consists of a cue, a routine, and a reward (yay, rewards!).

  • The Cue is the trigger that tells your brain to go into automatic mode.
  • The Routine is the physical or emotional process that happens after the cue.
  • The Reward tells your brain this is worth remembering.
For example, you’ve finished work for the day (cue), so you take the same path from your desk to the sofa to catch up on your favorite TV show (routine) and leave the workday stress behind (reward).

By identifying the cue and changing up the routine, you can change habits.

 
You finish work for the day (cue) and you take a detour to your walking shoes and headphones (new routine!). The reward is the feeling of joy after a walk around the neighborhood, soaking up some sunshine and vitamin D, listening to some peaceful or uplifting music or a stimulating podcast, or maybe you connect with a neighbor!

You adjusted your routine just enough to make a small positive change. Multiple small positive changes add up to big lasting improvements in your health and wellbeing.

Take it one step further to uncover the root cause of your routine.

Ask yourself what the old routine was about. Are you craving sweetness in your life and you are diving into sugary treats before bed? Are you so overwhelmed with your to-do list, aiming for perfection, that you just want to check-out completely? Is your irritability a result of lack of self-care and regular exercise? It can be life-changing to recognize the root cause and the first step is awareness.

More Quick Tips on Making New Habits

Make changes easy and small.  Bigger is not always better. Contrary to popular beliefs, habits that stick often start as small changes. Learn more tips and get examples for setting small diet and lifestyle changes from Chris Kresser – click here.

Build a crew. Change can be difficult and anything difficult needs support. Engage friends, family or coworkers to encourage you, or even make changes with you. Check in with us on social media for an online crew!  Facebook  Instagram

Lean into the process. Making changes takes practice and it’s OK to fail a little…or a lot. Taking on challenges and learning from failures are part of the process. Let it happen. This feels especially true for parents, teachers, and learners of all ages right now!

Celebrate the small stuff. Reflect on the journey you’ve taken and all you’ve learned along the way. Even if you haven’t reached the end-goal of a sustainable healthy habit. There is, without a doubt, something worth celebrating there.

Check out these other posts for tips to support stress as you manage change

Techniques and Apps to Calm You

Self-Care Sanity: The Non-Negotiable for Keeping Yourself Grounded

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