Ever wondered why some habits are easier to master than others? There's a little science behind why some habits stick and others fall apart at the seems despite your best efforts. Today, I am opening up some of the secrets of my Healthy Habits Lab and sharing how to practice healthy to create a body and life you positively love. Get your coffee or water, and come learn how its done!
In the busyness of our daily lives, it's all too easy to overlook the impact that our lifestyle habits have on our overall well-being. Now that I've mentioned it, you suddenly might be wondering how did these habits even get formed in the first place? Brushing your teeth, moisturising your face and neck, making dinners, or walking the dog are just simply something you do, often on automatic pilot. That's because the behaviours have become so deeply ingrained in your daily routine, that you no longer notice them. You just do it.
That is evidence of a well-anchored habit, and in this post I am going to explain how you can create new habits and master new behaviours to build a body and life you love.
How To Create Healthy Habits
Understanding how habits are formed is key to implementing positive changes in your life. Habits are like mental shortcuts, automatic responses to specific cues. When practiced consistently, they can quickly become ingrained in our daily routine, both the good or the not-so-good habits. This means that making small, positive choices daily can quickly start to add up, leading to significant transformations in your overall well-being. Pretty exciting, right?
Start Making New Habits
Starting new wellness habits can be both an exciting, and challenging process. It's almost never a straight-line, and often includes many moments of slip-ups and setbacks as you adjust to the new behaviours. Please know that is perfectly normal and 💯 part of the journey to mastering new lifestyle habits. Don't let this deter you. Accept it, learn from it, and restart from a stronger, more empowered, determined, and knowledgeable place.
Here's my step-by-step guide to help you initiate and maintain a positive habit successfully:
Identify Your Goal: clearly define the new behaviours and habits you want to build. Write it all out and be super specific about what you want to achieve, and why this is so important to you. This is such an important step in mind mapping the changes you wish to create. Have fun with it!
Start Small: break down the new habit into small, manageable steps. In clinic, I have clients in my Healthy Habits Lab, break things down into micro-sized steps that they can confidently achieve each day. This gives them a great sense of confidence and motivation; you can try it too. Starting with a small, bite-size and achievable goals makes the habit more attainable and less overwhelming.
Set a Trigger: for success, you need to associate your new habit with an existing routine or a specific trigger. This is is a crucial step I teach in Healthy Habits Lab, and makes such a difference in being able to adopt new behavioral changes (and quickly). The association can be something you already do regularly, like making coffee in the morning, making your bed, or brushing your teeth. The trigger doesn't matter, it just serves as a reminder or trigger for you to perform the new behaviour (habit).
So if you want to drink more water, put your water bottle next to the coffee pot. If you wanted to start morning meditation, place your yoga mat on the floor beside your bed the night before. You get the idea. Help your brain stitch the two activities together--its the secret to making habits that stick!
Choose a Specific Time: create a reasonable and consistent timeline to practice your new habit. Whether it's in the morning, during lunch, or before bedtime, having a designated time helps in building a routine. Think about what time of day would make the habit easiest, and try it out then. This might look like getting your new fitness regime done first thing in the morning before you get too busy or tired.
Be Consistent: consistency is always key when forming new behaviours and lifestyle habits. Aim to practice your new habit every day at the same time and in the same context to reinforce the behaviour.
Track Your Progress: keep a record of your efforts and track everything. This could be done by using a simple checklist, a lifestyle journal or planner, or through a habit-tracking app. On the Healthy Habits Lab, students use a weekly habit tracker that helps them see how consistent they are with their new, desired behaviours. Tracking your progress like this provides such a visual representation of your commitment and success.
Learn from Setbacks: can I just say, it's normal to face challenges and occasional setbacks. Instead of getting discouraged, view these setbacks as teachable moments and opportunities to learn. Identify what went wrong and adjust your approach accordingly. View these slip-ups with excitement because they are highlighting exactly what is getting in your way and tripping you up. And now that you know, you can do something about, right!
Revisit and Adjust: it is important to periodically evaluate your new habits. If they have become a seamless part of your routine, consider adding a new habit or tweaking the existing ones to keep things challenging and further your bigger goals.
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Build A Life You Love With Healthy Choices
Building a body and life you love starts with loving yourself enough to make healthy, positive choices (even when you don't feel like it). From the food you consume, to the activities you engage in daily, each decision contributes to nurturing your best life. When you prioritise nutritious foods, regular physical activity, and self-care practices, you're not just sculpting your body; you're building and enhancing your self-esteem, boosting your mood, and balancing your energy levels. This has such a trickle down effect and can spread positivity to all aspects of your life.
5 Quick Tips for Healthy Habits
Here's my quick tips on the most important lifestyle habits to focus on to begin your journey:
Prioritise Hydration
Water is the elixir of life. Keep adequately hydrated throughout the day for improved digestion, clearer skin, and your overall well-being. If you are looking to rebalance body weight, water is essential to help you curb over snacking and reduce food cravings. Aim for 3 litre per day.
Quality Sleep Matters
Make sleep a non-negotiable priority. Quality rest is crucial for your body to rejuvenate and repair overnight. Sleep, among other things, balances your hormones, manages your appetite and body weight, and is a key part of creating a healthier, happier you.
Move Your Body Daily
Get moving! Regular movement needs to be a core part of your routine, whether it's a brisk morning or leisurely evening walk, a gym workout, or even a dance session or simply just chasing the kiddies around the backyard. Physical activity boosts both your physical and mental health.
Mindfulness & Meditation
Take a few moments each day to practice mindfulness or meditation. These are two very empowering practices for reducing stress, improving focus, goal planning, and promoting a happier, more positive mindset. If it is not on your new habit list, add it now!
Remember, forming new habits and behaviours is a gradual process, and success comes from commitment and persistence. Don't be deterred by any setbacks, juts get at it. Learn from them, own the slip up and make the lesson worth while. By following the above tips, you'll increase your chances of developing positive habits and nail new behaviours that can contribute to a body and life you love!
Join Healthy Habits Lab
Want to become an absolute goddess at making new and healthy lifestyle habits that actually stick?
Come join the next intake of Healthy Habits Lab. The next 40 days could completely transform how you make habits and achieve your goals! Let's get you started now...
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So, tell me in the comments what new habits you'd like to achieve this coming year. I'd love to cheer you on and provide you with many more success tips. Let me know what specifically you are working on, and I'll pop back with some helpful ideas to help ensure your success!
Emma Lisa, Nutritionist & Women's Practitioner
Emma Lisa is a Nutritionist & Women's Health Practitioner with over 12+ years experience in wholefood nutrition, meal planning and health coaching. She is a published cookbook author, passionate food recipe creator and lifestyle blogger, and an advocate for women's health and anti-diet culture. When she's not in clinic, Emma is mum to five kids, in her test kitchen and a wellness digital creator. She lives in Sydney, Australia.
Healthy + happiness,
Emma Lisa xx
HEALTH & NUTRITION PRACTITIONER
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