3 ways to build healthy habits
As I mentioned in a previous Blog, habits are not easy to change. This goes for both breaking bad habits and building new healthy habits.
Building healthy habits takes time and a lot of effort, but in the end it will be very much worth it.
According to James Clear (author of Atomic Habits - read this book!) Habits are the small decisions you make and actions you perform every day. Every day. You can’t build new habits in a single day. It takes consistency.
However, here are a few different strategies to help stay consistent day to day:
Set your environment
One important factor in creating easy habits is your environment. At Bring It On CrossFit it is easy to be motivated in the gym and inspired to improve movement technique when you are around a group of likeminded, focused, and fun individuals. The environment is positive and motivating and this rubs off on you. The same can be said for building habits at home. Prepare your home, bedroom, kitchen etc to make future actions easier. If you have healthy snacks in easy-to-reach locations, whenever you in need of a snack you will more likely grab a healthy one.
2. Adopt the never miss twice mindset
I want you to adopt the mindset of ‘Never Missing Twice’. If you have a bad day, that’s fine, use it as motivation to have a really good day tomorrow. If you head out for dinner and have a few too many drinks, then make sure the next day and meal is a really good one, in line with your training goals. If you forget or miss completing your daily gratitude journal, then in the morning put your pen and paper on your pillow to help remind you to do it the following night. Get in the habit of bouncing back quickly.
3. Start your day with a positive intention
The difference between a good day and a bad day is often a few productive and healthy choices made at decisive moments. Each one is like a fork in the road, and these choices stack up throughout the day and can ultimately lead to very different outcomes. Starting your day with a positive intention or choice will get your day off in the best way possible. This just needs to be something very small to get the day moving in the right direction. This may be as simple as not looking at your phone first thing when you wake up or starting the day with a healthy, nutritious breakfast.
Stay consistent and over time it will become more natural.