Your Habits Create Your Success
Consistency is the key to success.
Habits are the key to consistency.
Therefore, habits are the key to success.
What is the secret to success when it comes to health?
There is no magic. There is no shortcut. There is no fast track. There is no quick fix.
The key to getting health, staying healthy and just generally being healthy, starts with our habits.
If you took a high level look at how you spend your time in any given day, could you identify patterns that are either helping your overall health or hindering your overall health?
We prioritize what is most important to us. We make time for activities, people, experiences and things that we value. For example, I value my oral hygeine, therefore I brush my teeth twice a day. Even when I travel or have breaks in my normal routine, I still brush my teeth because it is a habit that is so ingrained in my brain. It is part of who I am - someone who brushes her teeth regularly. I have been consistent with that habit for my whole life and therefore, I get a thumbs up from the dentist when I go.
Instead of focusing on goals, I recommend first identifying your values. Then set your sights on WHO you need to become in order to have that specific identity. Then, work backwards to fill in the actions and eventually habits you need to get there!
Here’s an example:
I value being healthy because I want to live a long, vibrant life.
I identify as an athlete.
What type of actions do athletes take? They make time for exercise. They are intentional with how they fuel their bodies. They make time for stretching and recovery. They have a coach or mentor and sometimes a team to inspire them, help guide them and help hold them accountable. They track their progress over time so they can adjust their plan accordingly.
Therefore, the actions I must take are:
I will schedule my workouts into my calendar
I will commit to eating protein at most meals and balancing out my carbs, fats, veggies and fruit. I will drink lots of water.
I will take one day off from exercise. do yoga once a week, and get one massage per month.
I will hire a coach and join a virtual team who meet regularly for group workouts.
I will fill out a habit tracker each day, week and month to track my progress.
The result of taking these actions and continuing to take these actions over time will result in new habits. These habits will result in me realizing my new identity. I am an athlete.
I recently implemented this Habit Tracker into my routine and it has helped so much. I am a very visual person and I am motivated by progress. If i see I am making progress towards a goal, I am more likely to want to continue working towards it. I also got an accountability buddy - we share our habit trackers every few days and this helps to reinforce the habits as well as increase the accountability. Win/Win! Please download this habit tracker, fill out some habits you want to establish/re-establish or reinforce. Then start checking away. Before you know it, you will be acting like that athlete (or whatever your identity of choice is) and eventually you will become that new identity.
Tips:
You don’t have to fill in all 10 habits. Maybe start with 3 or 4.
They don’t have to be things you do daily. They could b things you do weekly, or even monthly.
Try to choose habits you are not already fully committed to. For example, if I had to check off “brush teeth” each day, that would get boring and redundant because I am already in the habit.
