Forming Habits is Key to Staying on Track

We’re a month into the new year and many of us are starting to struggle to stay on track with the resolutions we made with such good intent a few short weeks ago. That’s nothing to beat yourself up about. It’s human nature.

If you have been consistent about your 7 a.m. gym visits, daily runs around the track at the high school and/ or your challenge to bike every trail in Prescott, you’re closer than you think to forming a new habit. If we go by the wellknown British study that concluded its takes people an average of 66 days to acquire a healthy new habit, you’re halfway there!

Again, that’s an average — the researchers found it actually took its subjects anywhere from 18 to 254 days to reach agreement with statements like “I do automatically,” “I do without thinking” and “I would find hard not to do.”

Whatever your timeline is, consistency is the key to creating the wellness routine you’re trying to weld onto your life.

One of the most effective techniques for this is the “three-step habit loop” originally from Charles Duhigg’s “Power of Habit,” published 10 years ago. It forms a positive feedback loop which, if your consistency keeps the positive feedback loop going, will build the momentum you need to get to “I would find hard not to do.” * The cue — This should be an event or reminder that happens at least once a day, every day, reminding you to step away from your day to practice your healthy habit.

*The routine — The behavior you want to embed in your mind as a habit, whether it’s drinking 8 ounces of water or heading out for your HIIT class.

*The reward — The payoff you get from completing the routine.

It can be intrinsic, like the pleasantly full feeling of drinking a glass of water, or a healthy “prize” you choose for yourself, such as a certain amount of time reading your favorite book.