How to Change Your Habits to Healthier Ones? Tips

Changing habits is difficult but possible! Habit theory suggests that there are key elements that influence everyday actions. The stimulus that triggers the desire, the habitual behavior, and the reward – these are the three pillars that create a habit.

But how can you put this knowledge into practice to make positive changes in your life, especially in the context of health and well-being? I have already written about habits many times, and today I have prepared some practical tips that will make the process of shaping them much simpler and, above all, more effective! 🙂

 

Habits and Healthy Lifestyle

The key period for forming habits is childhood – a time of intensive development when our mind is particularly susceptible to external influences. During this period, we learn behavior through modeling, i.e. imitating the actions of others, most often parents. This is why it is worth paying attention to habits from an early age.

However, shaping various habits actually takes place throughout life. If you implement an appropriate action plan, you can modify them, although it is not easy. The success of this process is influenced by many variables, including: the complexity of the behavior you want to implement, your resources and individual capabilities, the environment in which you live, social support or lack thereof, etc.

 

 

A habit is an automatic reaction that occurs beyond our awareness. In other words – if a given activity is your habit, it does not require any cognitive involvement from you, you simply take the action in response to the stimulus (e.g., under the influence of a stressful situation at work you reach for a sweet snack without thinking, which gives you relaxation). 

Research suggests that widespread educational campaigns that focus solely on providing health information may be ineffective if they are not accompanied by advice on working to change habits. This could partly explain why, despite growing nutritional knowledge (which is increasingly available via e.g. the Internet), a huge part of society struggles with serious health problems (cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obesity).

 

Building Healthy Habits – Practical Tips

Have you ever tried to change unhealthy habits or introduce new ones many times, but it did not bring the expected results? Compare them with the tips below. Maybe you will be able to find the reason for the failure and make one more attempt with a new, well-thought-out action plan

1. Implementation

Imagine you want to drink more water every day. Instead of just talking about a new habit, try to implement it in your daily life. Specify a certain time and place for implementation, e.g. right after getting out of bed, I will drink half a glass of water. By creating this routine, you will make drinking water a natural part of your morning.

2. Stacking Habits

Often the best way to introduce a new habit is to combine it with an old one we already have. For example, if you brush your teeth every morning, you can combine this activity with doing a few squats. This way, both habits will reinforce each other!

3. Not all at once

Remember that changing habits takes time and patience. Instead of trying to change everything at once, focus on one or at most two habits at a time. Once you manage to implement them, you can move on to the next ones. It will also strengthen your sense of effectiveness, which is extremely important in the context of change.

4. An Environment that Supports Habits

Your environment can have a huge impact on the formation of new habits. It is worth making sure that it promotes healthy choices! Prepare a glass of water in the evening so that it is ready to drink immediately after waking up. Leave fresh vegetables and fruits in a visible place in the kitchen so that they are easily accessible, and spread out your exercise mat in the morning so that you can start training immediately after returning home. These are just a few examples, the choice of action depends on your habit

5. Resources

Rest, sleep and regeneration are key elements influencing the ability to make changes. By taking care of your resources, you will have more energy and motivation to work on your habits. This way, it will be easier to resist temptations and maintain the actions you have taken, so do not neglect this area.

 

Remember that changing habits is a process that requires commitment and regularity. By using these simple tips, you can gradually introduce positive changes in your life that will affect your health and well-being 🙂

Bibliography:

1. Brytek-Matera A. Psychodietetyka. PZWL. 2021. roz. Bąk-Sosnowska M. Niezdrowe nawyki żywieniowe i ich zmiana.
2. Clear J. Atomowe nawyki. Galaktyka. 2018.
3. Riet van’t J, Sijtsema SJ, Dagevos H, De Bruijn GJ. The importance of habits in eating behaviour. An overview and recommendations for future research. Appetite. 2011 Dec;57(3):585-96. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2011.07.010.