March 23, 2022
By Ella Tozduman
Webmaster
Some people jump right out of bed early in the morning, head straight to the bathroom, brush their teeth, wash their faces and get ready for the day. However, if you are like the average American, it takes you 24 minutes and two snooze alarms to finally roll out of your bed. Whatever the process may look like for you, seek to recognize the habits that are part of your routines.
Habits are behaviors or tendencies that are present in your day-to-day life. They become natural, familiar and could even be performed subconsciously. Habits may seem like just an intuitive part of how people live, but implementing new and healthy ones can be extremely beneficial in improving one’s overall health, well-being and quality of life.
The power of forming strong and healthy habits is limitless. The benefits include bringing you closer to your goals, changing how you act and feel and living a more productive and healthy lifestyle.
Adding new habits into your daily routine is a process that takes time and effort. Start by recognizing the habits you already have in your life. Consider if these are productive or if they are holding you back. Then, decide which habits you should change, adjust or keep exactly how they are.
Start by recognizing the habits you already have in your life. Consider if these are productive or if they are holding you back. Then, decide which habits you should change, adjust or keep exactly how they are.
The next step is to pick a few habits or behaviors that you want to add to your routine. These may include waking up early, getting more exercise, starting your day with a glass of water and cutting down on your screen time.
Simultaneously, pay attention to the stressors or triggers that you face and how you plan to change them. Breaking habits that hold you back is just as important as creating new ones.
There are constructive strategies you can utilize to make it easier to incorporate these routines. One would be to start small. Making your goals simple and attainable instead of super hard and complicated will lead you to more success without causing you to feel overwhelmed. For example, if you set the goal of being able to run one mile, you may consider pushing your body to complete the mile in one day. However, this will leave you fatigued, sore, unmotivated and likely to avoid the activity in the future. If you create the feasible habit of going outside every day for a week and jogging for 20 minutes, your stamina will increase, and by the end of a month that mile will be much easier to achieve.
Additionally, change up your surroundings and put yourself in an environment that will allow you to thrive and make the best decisions. This could range from creating a comfortable place where you can work efficiently to stocking your pantry with healthier food. Writing down a plan or your goals is another strategy that can be helpful. It will allow you to envision your end goal, stay organized and track your progress. Being able to see the growth you are making is exciting and will push you to keep moving forward. Also, creating a plan will assure that you remain on track and move in the right direction.
Finally, get inspired. Explore new goals, learn new techniques and focus on developing habits that rejuvenate you. Some that you may want to consider include buying a book and reading a few pages every night, complimenting others, eating more well-balanced meals, going to bed earlier, journaling, putting your phone away, trying to reach 10,000 steps per day and so many more. The best habits will be the ones that are customized especially for you.
