E154: 5 Things You beed to Create a New Habit

E154: 5 Things You beed ti Create a New Habit

Whether you are starting a new habit, replacing an old one, or re-implementing your lost healthy habits, here are the five things you need to create that habit…

[00:29] Welcome back to The Women's Empowerment Podcast. I am your host and healthy habit mentor Valerie Levine. I am very excited today because we are talking about obviously one of my favorite topics which is healthy habits and creating new healthy habits. Now there are so many different ways that we can actually change and transform our current habits or create new habits. However, there are five key things that I want you to really consider when you're developing team habits or when you're changing an old habit or a bad habit. We'll call it into a good habit. Now I want you to think about each of these different things and I want you to think about which of the things you get stuck with or where you feel like you get stuck the most. And when you are re-listening or reading about each of these five things that I'm going to suggest and highly recommend that you incorporate or use to incorporate your new habit into your life. I want you to notice which one is holding you back or which one is your biggest pain point. And then how can you start to overcome this point or how can you start to work with this struggle and use it to talk a little bit more about this as we go on with today's episode. And you know how I am. I like to dive right in.

[02:42] #1 REASON

Without further ado, let's get into the first thing you need to create a new habit is a reason when it comes to creating your new habit. I want you to define and discover your reason.

Why do you want a new habit? Why do you want to make this change? Why do you want to start something different? Or replace something you already are doing? The answer to these questions the why right because dot dot dot will become the motivation to start your new pattern. Some people call this your “why power” because it's the driving force to keep you moving forward even when you don't want to do the work. But remember your reason reminds you of why the action is so important and gets you back on track. So right now you're going to be listening to this episode and perhaps at the end of the episode you're going to feel incredibly inspired and motivated to take action because that is always my intention for when you're listening to the show. I want you to feel inspired to take action.

So let's say you do, let's say you feel motivated, you're like yes, I'm ready to change or I'm ready to implement something new. I want to be healthier. I want to feel better. I'm tired of feeling stuck and lazy, and blah And I want to be healthier and feel better. So you are all fired up. Now you're listening to this episode. You're excited you have an idea. You're like yes, I want this. Why? Why do you want this because what's going to happen is you'll start your habits, as we often do, and we get into maybe a little bit of a rhythm, a little bit of a pattern. We're feeling good. We're getting excited.

And then one day, we're just like, I don't want to or something else comes up and we can't do it when we want to do it and it gets pushed off later in the day. And by the end of the day, you're just so tired, or there's just not enough time or whatever else excuse is coming up for that moment for that habit. And this is where the “why power” comes in. This is where the reason is so important. Because even when you're tired and even when you don't want to, even though when I'm not in your your air pods or not with you at the gym, or in your car or wherever you are right now, you will need your reason and your reason is going to be what drives you forward.

[5:19] #2 HABIT TRIGGER

The second thing you need when creating a new habit is a trigger.

A habit trigger is an event that automatically causes us to complete another habit. It supports our habit, and it also simplifies it and they kind of support and simplify how to go hand in hand. Because when something is simple, it's kind of supports that habit but what it's supportive. It also just happens to be simple which is amazing. The habit trigger sequence or formula is as follows. When this happens, then that follows or when trigger happens. Then habit follows. So here are some examples that I want to share with you. When I make my coffee then I stir in my intention for the day.

When I start my car, then I play a personal development audiobook or podcast when I put my PJs on, then I floss and brush my teeth.

So think about the things you are already doing every single day. Are you making a smoothie every day? Are you driving to work every day? Do you have a shower every day? Are you going for a walk every day? Are you getting up from bed every day? The answer is probably yes to almost all of those.

And what I want you to do is see where you can bring your new habit into the things you're already doing. If you want to start taking your supplements, you know that habit triggers when I pour a glass of water in the morning. I take my supplements or when I get out of the shower. Then I set my gym clothes up for after work or for the next morning or whatever it is. So setting yourself up for success is the habit.

This is going to make it easier because it's already going to start to become automatic just like these other triggers are these other triggers are already automated they're already habits.

[7:53] #3 MICRO HABIT

The third thing you need to create a new habit is a micro habit.

Write this down: small positive actions over time lead to positive change and success.

I'll repeat it one more time. Small positive actions over time will lead to positive change and success. It is so much simpler. Then we make it forget overthinking it. Just take action. Take small actions. What I want you to do right here right now is write down the micro action slash habit that you are taking every day. That brings you closer to your goals. Here's where it's going to change a little bit for each of us.

The first thing I want you to do is look at your habit. What are you changing? What are you creating? What are you implementing? Can you simplify it? Can you make it easier? Can you make it smaller? Can you make it super simple? I was chatting with a friend of mine who is working on building back her walking habit and her daily walks and she said Val I'm just not doing it the excuses are coming and I know that it's good for me. I'm just not going to walk. I used to walk for an hour. I used to walk for 45 minutes. I used to walk for half an hour and I just wouldn't get up. And I said the next time you tell yourself that you're going for a walk stand up. That's your micro habit.

Your micro habit is going for a two minute walk instead of an hour walk. Put your shoes on. That's a micro micro habit. Put your shoes on micro habits, your podcasts, micro habits. These are already things we know how to do because they're already things we've done before. Make it super simple. So not only are you going to customize what your action is, but you can make your habit simplified so you can make it even smaller. The other thing that might change for you is that this might be something completely new.

You are not someone who has gone for walks before so you don't even know really where to start. I mean walking is easy, right? We already are. But how can we make a habit out of this? Well, just like I was saying before, create these tiny little actions to help move the needle forward. So whether that's putting your shoes on at the front door, setting an alarm on your phone for when you're going to stand up, setting a timer for two minutes. Maybe one day, it's planning the walks. The next day, it's preparing for the walks and then on the third day we are actually going to take the walk because often what habit happens is we think of our habit. And then we're like, wait a second. There are so many more things that need to happen before I can actually do this.

For example, people who want to work out three times a week and they've never been to a gym before they don't even have a membership. Guess what needs to happen before you can workout three times a week. You need to sign up for the gym.

You need to make sure that your shoes and your clothes are ready. You need to have a plan for when you get there. So a lot of times we overcomplicate it and we make the habit or the goal really big when the simplest thing we can do is create that micro habit.

[10:58] #4 EFFECTIVE PRACTICE

The fourth thing we need when creating a new habit is effective practice. The best, most effective method of practice is the one that you keep doing. Okay. Practicing a new habit is not a one size fits all approach. We all learn, build and perform tasks very differently. For some of us habit stacking is key. For others we need more accountability or perhaps there's something in between here are some bonus tips for effective practice. small chunks bigger action. This is similar to micro habits which we just talked about really breaking things down from that bigger action. The second one is repetition. Repetition, repetition, keep repeating and repeating and repeating the action. And the third one is to be mindful. I'm actually going to talk about all three of these bonus tips near the end of this episode.

But for now, let's talk a little bit more about what effective practice is: what works for one habit may not work for another. So what I'd like you to do is play and experiment with different ideas and methods that haven't worked for you in the past and see how it goes for your new habit now.

For example, if you know that what gets scheduled in your calendar is less going to get done and you are going to schedule your habit into your calendar. If you do not use a calendar or a planner. Well guess what? You're not going to be doing that. Maybe you are someone who needs someone else to text them and say hey, let's go for that block or Hey, Did you brush your teeth and floss today? Or hey, did you eat your healthy meal in the morning? Whatever your unhealthy habit is.

Perhaps you need that accountability. So perhaps there is an accountability buddy or friend you can message to say, Would you mind helping me with this? I could really use your support. I need you to text me every day this time to do that. Or perhaps it's just setting an alarm on your phone with the label of do the thing you said you were going to do do and then XYZ to healthy habits.

When you look at the strategies or the practices or the methods that have worked before, I want you to be really open minded to the fact that again, it might not be the same for each of your habits. And you might find that there is this really amazing kind of opportunity or space for you to explore and try different things. I tried reading in the middle of the day and it just was not working for me. I was very inconsistent with this. And what I noticed was it's inconsistent because my Monday through Friday isn't the same but I can make every Monday and I can make every Tuesday the same and I can make every Wednesday the same so I adjusted when I scheduled something into my calendar. Now ideally, if you really want to build this habit quickly, those is like an extra bonus that I was planning on sharing today.

If you really want to make this habit quicker and more automated, do it every single day at the exact same time because your body and your physical body will start to create these neuro pathways and you will naturally start to do the thing. Because it's at the same time every day. Okay, so that's helpful, but it doesn't have to be that the reason why I don't talk about that that much is because I feel like it discourages people such as myself who have very different day to day lives.

But if you can manage it, then I would definitely recommend it.

[14:58] #5 AN ACTION PLAN

The fifth thing you need and habit forming is a plan and actually, I'm going to add to that you need a plan of action. The plan itself needs to be specific, attainable and also flexible. The plan needs to make sense for you. It needs to inspire you, as well as challenge you. Most importantly the plan needs to be actionable. Can you start that and underline that in bold that.

You want a new habit. What's your plan? Right What are you going to be doing every single day? What are the action steps that you are going to be taking? Even if there are teeny tiny little steps forward we do not need to take leaps and bounds right away. We are breaking it down those micro habits what are those micro steps?

Because we are creating a plan. I would like your plan to be as specific as possible meaning you're going to write down day one. Make a playlist day to make a workout plan day two, day three I set out my workout clothes. The attainable part should be very simple. You know how I don't like to say should but it can be very simple. When we are specific and talking about those simplified micro habits. The reason why I added flexible here has a lot to do with a we're gonna talk about soon mindfulness, but allowing the plan to change and ebb and flow as it needs to because remember, we're not sure what's the best best method for us with this specific habit yet, so we need to learn about what that is for us. Maybe it's simplifying it even more.

Now, the plan needs to make sense to you. Okay, I get this all the time. Val. I want to work out at six o'clock every morning. And I'm like, great. What time do you normally get up back? Oh, well, you know, I usually sleep until like eight, like, okay, so you're not working out and you don't like waking up at six in the morning. I'm gonna tell you right here and right now. This plan is destined for failure at this time. Not that you can't get there. Just like it's not a great attainable plan in the beginning. Okay. But you also want your plan to inspire you. So perhaps you're already working out in the morning but you want to get up a little bit earlier. Well, can you set your alarm earlier and it challenges you? What would you do if you had an extra 15 minutes every morning before work? What would you do if you were able to exercise 30 minutes earlier every day? What base are you creating? What time are you creating? What life are you creating? But then also that little bit of a challenge so were waking up maybe five minutes earlier? 10 minutes earlier? 15 minutes earlier, and we're building up on that.

Again, the most important thing no matter what plan you are creating for yourself needs to be actionable. What is your plan there, your action steps?

[18:16] Bonus Tip #1: REPETITION

Oh boy. Alright. So the five things that you need to create a habit. Here are those three bonus tips explained: a little bit more effective practice requires repetition. Do something again and again and again, to make it a habit. It sounds simple, but why is it so hard for us to do? It's usually pretty difficult because it requires time and also because we are physically changing neural pathways. in our brain.

When we make these changes, our brain and our body start to panic, even if the change is small. Even if we know the change is for the better. So how do we get over this panic? We do the action again. And again. We keep doing it until it becomes habitual with your body and your mind. I see this all the time with new clients to the studio who have never done Pilates before or have never done reformer Pilates which is using equipment or machines that at first glance looks very intimidating. The first time I saw the machine I was not sure what was going on. I did not know anything about how to use it. But now I have been on it so many times I've used it so many times that I am comfortable getting on the machine I'm comfortable if a teacher is putting me in a new position and telling me to do a new exercise because I understand the machine I understand my body and how my body works on this machine. But when it's new the body gets tense the body starts to pull away the body starts to do strange things to say no no, no, this is not for us. I don't know what this is. I'm keeping you safe. We're going to stay on the couch versus going to Pilates. Okay. So just know that there are going to be things that come up the feeling of maybe a little jitters or excitement or anxiety or panic or whatever that is for you. However, that's manifesting for you. But just know that you are Oh K going for a daily walk eating a healthier meal.

You know creating healthy boundaries or finding time for mindful transitions in your day. These are all so supportive for your health and your wellness and we know it is we know what we're supposed to be doing. We know that these are incredibly beneficial tools to elevating our health and our wealth and our happiness. We just have to keep doing it. This is why action is so important. Can we not talk about this more and more and more.

[20:58] Bonus Tip #2: SMALL CHUNKS, BIGGER ACTION

Okay, our bonus tip number two for creating a new habit are the smaller chunks of the bigger action. So remember, we're outlining our dream or desire our goal and what you want to do is you want to make sure it's yours because this is where that “why power” is very important. When it's your dream, not anyone else's. You are able to define it clearly. You know your desire and it's gonna fuel you with that “why power” because it's yours. You want it for your reasons. This is important. Once you have this dream or desire, break it down into smaller goals or milestones. You can do this by reverse engineering the tree then break each of those goals down into smaller steps or small chunks. Because the small chunks will lead you to the bigger action of those micro habits. The smaller the better. Each time you complete one of these actions. You are checking off a box. You are increasing your confidence, you are increasing your ability to do amazing things and to make change. Then once you've outlined each of these little micro actions or micro habits, you can take it one step at a time. And really what I mean is just start with one. Don't worry about anything else. Your only focus is the one step. Then once that's done, the box is checked. Then look at step two.

Make starting a new habit as simple as possible. Okay, we're really like I want to say super small chunks, we're really breaking it down. So for example, if you want to have a daily reading habit, choose a book as a micro habit. Set a time in your calendar to read every day.

Put the book somewhere you'll sit and read it. Remove distractions. Read 10 or more pages a day. I'm saying these as a list because I want them to be really one except maybe it's broken up by each day.

[23:10] Bonus Tip #3: MINDFULNESS

Mindfulness is such a big part of forming a new habit. When you are creating a new habit, especially if it's something you haven't done before, or you are replacing an old habit.

You want to be the observer you want to notice without judgment what your body is doing, what your mind is thinking and saying how you are acting or reacting to these changes. Perhaps it's the physical, mental or emotional changes. You're noticing the hood of those emotional roadblocks of oh, I can't do this. I'm not good enough for imposter syndrome.

Or they're just excuses that will come up for you. And everyone will be a little bit different. However, it might also be what I was mentioning before where you know, it doesn't quite fit in the schedule. Or perhaps you'll find that you need more accountability and if you're listening to this episode, and you are thinking oh my goodness gracious, I need all the help I can get. I am really ready to invest in myself and make a change.

Then I love to invite you into my Make a Habit Mentorship Program, which is an exclusive one on one customized and personal mentorship experience. It helps you build and stick to your habits and routines. The program works over four weeks with weekly check ins and accountability between the sessions. This is for you if you are ready to get out of those lazy patterns, get out of feeling blah and get into your best version of yourself. It's for you if you already are ready to elevate your health and wellness you are ready to take action and consistent action.

Right we How often are we stopped and we just need to overcome those limiting beliefs. And how I like to describe this coaching with myself is that I help shine the light on the exact habits, the exact patterns, the exact micro habits that we need to be focusing on together. And that accountability is really going to propel you forward because guess what? It's not just for you. It's not just your time.

You are now inviting someone else into this journey with you into this transformation with you and I am here to be your mirror to be your support to hold you accountable to the things you've always wanted to do to create a life you've always wanted. To live and feel healthier feels good again in your body.

Instagram @vallavignelife

Podcast Host

Valerie LaVigne

Valerie is the creator and founder of Valerie LaVigne Life and the Women's Empowerment Show. She helps busy and empowered women create healthy habits so that they can become the best version of themselves and transform their lives. Learn more about Valerie here!