How to Make Your Habit Stick(er)
It’s not about motivation and reward. At all.
As I mentioned on my last post, sticker charts aren’t meant to motivate you to do a new habit. And, thankfully for all of us, creating a new habit that sticks isn’t about mustering up enough motivation to do the habit 90 times. We can all get the motivation to stick to a new diet or exercise routine for a couple of weeks. Aaaaand then we stop. Because we haven’t followed the science-backed steps to habit formation. Thankfully the steps are so much easier than motivation and reward. Whew!
New and completed sticker charts.
The hardest part about creating any routine is making it a habit. Richard Dreyfuss had it right in the movie What About Bob: the key is baby steps. Start with small, manageable things that you can actually achieve and gradually work your way up to loftier goals. Want to start exercising every day? Start with five minutes. That’s all you need to build a habit! Now, you need a trigger: something that will cue you that it is time to exercise. Pick an activity you already do consistently every day. It could be making coffee, walking the dog, brushing your teeth, or shutting down the computer after work. Then, each day after you do your trigger activity, exercise for 5 minutes. That’s it. Just do it every day, right after your trigger activity. Soon, that activity will trigger your exercise habit and you won’t have to think about it. Starting small helps you get some early wins and feel really good about accomplishing your goals. You can easily make time for 5 minutes. Start small and gradually progress to longer workouts. But always know that when life gets really hectic you can just drop back down to 5 minutes to keep the habit going.
Start with a walk, some bodyweight strength training exercises like these or check out a free video of any type of workout you like. Just search “5 minute” plus whatever workout you like: yoga, pilates, HIIT, zumba, whatever. I’m a fan of PopSugar. The instructors are upbeat and the videos range in style, exercise type, and length (when you’re ready to progress to longer workouts). I also love Alo Yoga for their kids yoga series (plus plenty of longer flows). So cute and fun. We’re already using a sticker chart, why not start with some kids yoga? Let’s have a little fun while we’re starting out. No need to be too serious!
For more information about creating habits that stick, check out the book Tiny Habits by BJ Fogg. He breaks down the science of how habits are formed and walks you through the process. Baby stepping your way to success.
You can also check out books by Dr Rangan Chatterjee, especially Feel Better in 5. Or listen to his podcast about it.
Wishing you all success in any habit that you set out to do. Want someone to hold you accountable? Click below to send me an email for a free meeting with me.
