Let’s ask you an honest question – how’s that new year’s resolution going? Don’t worry; we forgot about ours too.
Whether life got in the way or the excuses took over, it’s important to remember that struggling to stick to resolutions doesn’t make you a failure. Building healthy habits isn’t always easy, especially at the start.
While there’s no denying that healthy habits are hard to stick to, seeing them through always pays off. But how do you make this possible? Read on to discover some simple tricks that will help to make habits stick.
How To Make Habits Stick
From trying a new exercise routine to taking daily multivitamins to safeguard your diet, there are many healthy habits worth sticking to. Here are four golden tips to assist you along the way:
1. Always Start Small
Just like most things in life, it’s always best to start small when building healthy habits. Setting too big of a goal will only overwhelm you and make it harder to complete!
The trick here is to break your habit up into smaller stepping stones. For example, if your healthy habit is to drink 2L of water a day, build this up over the space of a week. Increase your daily water intake by 200ml each day until you reach 2L. Doing it in small increments will boost your morale and set you up for success.
2. Keep Your Goals In Mind
Whether you just want to improve your health or have a specific target to hit, keep your goal in mind at all times. We often get so wrapped up in fear of failure, that we forget why we’re doing something in the first place!
Write your goals down and put them somewhere you will see every single day. It’s also worth noting down your progress so that you can see how far you’ve come.
3. Look Out For Excuses
Excuses are usually what ruins healthy habits. Whether it’s a shortage of time or lack of energy, make note of your excuses when they appear. Over time, you will be able to address these excuses and make changes to ensure they don’t take you off track.
4. Accept Knockbacks For What They Are
Most of us often feel discouraged if we fall off track. This creates a spiral effect, and in turn, ruins the healthy habit we’ve been trying to build. Fixing this involves changing your perspective.
Down days will happen; they’re a natural part of life. Instead of beating yourself up about them, accept them for what they are and try again tomorrow! Taking one or two days out is fine in the grand scheme of things; there’s no harm done, just as long as you return to your healthy habit.
Remember Why You Started!
On average, it takes 66 days for a behaviour to become automatic. That’s only 66 days of trying a bit harder than you’re used to. 66 days to improve the rest of your life! The results will certainly be worth it, and before you know it, your new healthy habit will become a regular routine.
We’re very proud to bring you this feature in association with Vitabiotics. For more articles, please pay a visit to our lifestyle page.
