Fitness and habit
It is safe to say that I’ve learned a few things about lifetime fitness over the past 35 years. If you asked me what the most important missing ingredient is as it relates to whether a fitness program will be successful long term, I would say, “habit”. The most powerful weapon most overlooked in fighting both failure and success with health and fitness, is habit.
In my fitness presentations people often ask me to comment on whether this or that exercise program or workout routine really works, usually based on ads they’ve seen on TV or social media. I think my answer surprises many, in that they expect me to knock the competing programs to elevate mine. Here’s how I answer the question; “The truth is that they all work! The question should not be do they work, but rather is it a program that you can stick with for the rest of your life.”
Years ago, I did extensive research on how habits - lifetime habits - are formed. I then developed the 21 Day Fitness Challenge and offered it for several years to individuals and organizations. My largest client was the University of California at Berkley. I designed a custom fitness challenge for them, and they had their entire staff of over 700 people participate.
Challenges work for two reasons (1) because they lock you into making a commitment to do something every day for a period long enough for you to benefit from the changes you’re experiencing, and (2) challenges move you from trying something to making it a habit.
The dictionary definition of habit is: "An acquired behavior pattern regularly followed until it has become almost involuntary." Norman Vincent Peale described it this way, "Repetition of the same thought or physical action develops into a habit which, repeated frequently enough, becomes an automatic reflex." Someone once said, "We first make our habits, then they make us." It has also been said that the best way to predict your future is to create it.
Here is an accurate summation of the science behind forming a habit:
By simply devoting a specific amount of time daily to the formation of any habit you wish to establish - if done consistently for an extended period - it should be harder not to engage in the new behavior than it would be to continue doing it.
It has also been proven that it is additionally beneficial to the establishment of habit if the behavior is performed at the same time every day. It gets even better if other senses can be utilized as well.
An example using fitness would go something like this: Work out for 10 minutes every day. Wear similar clothing each day. Do your exercise in the same location every day. Watch the same TV show, and/or listen to the same music when exercising every day. Got it? The more senses you can involve in the new habit, the more likely it is to become ingrained in the neural pathways of your brain.
Why do you brush your teeth every day? Do you even think about it? Do you approach the sink, hesitate, and say, "You know what, I've got a busy day today, I think I'll skip brushing today and simply brush my teeth longer tomorrow." Probably not!
We unconsciously brush our teeth everyday like mind numb robots, because at some point early in our childhood someone dutifully stood beside us every day, put toothpaste on the brush, and even covered our hand with theirs and helped us brush. And it continued until it stuck as a habit.
That sums up why my 10-minute fitness program is so successful.
If you can’t find ten minutes a day to improve your most valuable asset – your body, there’s no hope for you! However, if you’re willing to set aside ten minutes a day, and are willing to stick with it long enough for it to become a part of the habitual routines of your life, I guarantee that you will get and stay fit for life.
