Change your habits, change your life....

Creating new habits and getting rid of the old takes work. Change your habits, change your life. I believe this is so true. I have been working with someone who had no idea what they were actually eating every day and how much time they spent in front of their television. By simply changing a few simple nightly habits can really change our life. We all have something that we do that we know is not serving us well. Some of us it might be raiding the freezer for ice cream too often, others might be eating a big plate of nachos while binge watching NETFLIX. Maybe you are a coach potato and want to feel more energetic. There are some people that spend too much money on stuff, I know I have been guilty with buying things that I really do not need. Whatever it is that you feel a little nudge to change, there is hope. It really is true, change a habit, change your life. I have read a couple of books on habit changing and it is incredible how we form our habits and have no idea that we are doing so. What is interesting is that we can undo them in the exact same way we learned them! Yes, it takes work, but it can be done. Here are a few ways that many psychologists have written about.

· Identify the behavior and call it out. If you don’t acknowledge it, then you are accepting it. Some of us spend so much unproductive time on social media or simply googling things. I know I am completely guilty of spending hours watching some goofy videos of cute animals or kids. I do find it interesting for those who watch so much TV and they wonder why they have anxiety from listening to all the news media or watch shows night after night. If you do not recognize that you are spending hours each night in front of the TV, then you must be okay with and that is okay. Ask yourself, how is the habit serving me? Is it hurting you in some way such as health, chores, etc.? Some things may be a simple switch up or maybe just cut back. For instance, switching from a diet soda to a sparkling water, or having a fried egg and toast instead of powdered donuts. I refer these as tweaks. Simple easy tweaks in our daily routine can add up over time. That is why daily habits are so crucial to review.

· Devise a back up plan for the anchor (what triggers the habit). Example, if you come home and change clothes and plop down on the sofa with a bag a chips and grab your phone to binge out on social media, plan on a quick change up such as in calling a friend, child, parent, sibling instead when you get home or do a quick brisk walk for 5 minutes. There are many things to substitute in for a disruption of the “bad” habit and replace with something new. Find something to replace when you figure out what your trigger. Sometimes, removing a trigger completely works well. Maybe, not having ice cream in the house, or chips, or place your phone on the charging station in a back room so you will not be tempted to go on Pinterest for hours (totally guilty here).

· Visualize your new self. I like this idea. Seeing yourself in a new way. I am practicing being a relaxed and calm person. I do everything in a hurry. I am working on slowing down and doing more meticulous work. It is not easy. For so long, I did everything from eating to cleaning to driving fast. Why? Slow down and think smarter not harder lol. Visualize yourself as being a healthier slimmer you or a neat freak. I do like this one. How about being more present in the moment? Yes, I am sure many could do that. I had a project where I had to visualize who I want to be in a year. That is hard when you are 60 years old. But I did the project. I remembered that I wanted to be a relaxed, calm, and energetic women that was courageous at trying new things. Not quite there yet! (would like to get rid of the cellulite but don’t think that is happening anytime soon lol. I can live with it.

· Take baby steps. I cannot agree more. I have been told, Janie, I only lost two pounds why are you impressed? Well, 2 pounds is 2 T-Bones off your body. If you take smaller steps that seem more natural, it will stay more permanent. If you make some small tweaks to your daily routine, at the end of the year, it can do wonders. Small hinges swing big doors. Remember it is all in the tweaks here and there. I am so proud of Louis for cutting out a lot of the processed food he would snack on. He still has a little bowl of ice cream every night, but he dumped the daily snacking on chips. Tweak your eating habits and moving habits to benefit your health. It all adds up. I do yoga once a week and cannot believe how it has strengthened more core. Now, I do practice on or two poses a day for a 1 minute but that is it! Yes, one day a week can do wonders!

· Limit negative talk. Do not beat yourself up. It is proven that when we are down, and feeling bad, we tend to throw in the towel. Don’t go there. Tell yourself it is okay, learn from it and move on. Our mind loves to keep running a loop and reminding us about our screwups. That does not serve us well. Move on.

· Damn that Primal Brain of ours LOL. Remember, our primal part of our brain, wants to keep us safe, fed, and using as little energy as possible. It wants to protect us. This is natural. However, we have a prefrontal cortex that we can use to negotiate what is best and face the fear. Make a commitment to tell your primal brain that we appreciate its opinion, but it is not in control at the moment. The primal brain will want you to eat the donut because it tastes so good, and it will feel great for about 5 minutes. Then, you will spend the next 30 minutes asking yourself why you ate it! Or, sit here on the sofa instead of going on a walk. It is so nice and cozy here lol. I used to talk myself out of my workout by Wednesday each week. I started out doing fantastic and never failed to start finding every excuse in the book. Now, it is not negotiable. It is just a part of the routine. Saves me such much energy. It is a mindset that we just do it. Non-negotiable like brushing your teeth.

Now, think of something that is on your radar that you want to add as a daily habit or get rid of. Maybe it is as simple as telling those you love that you love them each and every day. What ever we do daily ....remember, small hinges swing big doors.

Have a beautiful day