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How I broke a bad habit

A little while ago I realized I was getting into a pretty deep rut that was going to turn into a bad habit if I didn’t do something about it.

 

It was during the beginning of the Covid-19 situation, and I found that I was starting to skip my workouts more than normal. My whole schedule was thrown off, the gym felt lonely because no one was there so I would just say screw it and go home. I would open a beer and just watch some Netflix.

 

Honestly, I was surprised at how fast it happened.
I think a LOT of us were sliding into not-so-productive behaviors then, and if you weren’t good for you! But if you were, just remember you’re normal. I’m just grateful I realized it before it got out of hand!
Fact: Getting out of that rut was a LOT harder than I expected it to be, and I knew I had to get strategic and tactical about it.
Everything that was going on in my life at that point supported staying in the rut and doubling down … I’m talking about stress, less time on my hands, you name it!
Here’s what I did to kick it:
I KNEW I had to make a radical change to remove the temptation.
For me, that meant shaking up my routine by getting really BUSY with something, so there was no time or energy to get seduced back into my rut.
I decided to start running more. I have never been a “runner” in my life but figured it was something new to try. I also felt like I was not outside as much and that’s why I was starting to fall into not great habits. At first, I would run 2 maybe 3 miles and it wasn’t terrible but it was hard. I simply kept my consistency up trying to go for a few runs a week. I ended up going for 12 mile runs after a few months.
Plus, I had something to show for it: a new hobby and a great way to clear my head!
In the book Atomic Habits, James Clear writes that one of the best ways to break a habit is to reduce exposure to temptations – removing anything that prompts you to do it.
Then, once those cues are gone, you can reframe your mindset by looking at the benefits of NOT doing the action. For me, that meant substituting other things that gave me tangible results!
It’s a pretty irresistible combo!
Just some food for thought, especially if you have picked up a habit or two over the past few months that you’d like to kick.
-Coach Pat
PS: If you feel like you need help switching up your eating habits we have something amazing in store for you next week! It is still in the works but be on the lookout for more information about our 5 Week Healthy Eating Skills Program launching in September. We are proud to say that this our best program to date!

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