Daily Perricone

Lean, Long & Strong*

Habits are the things you do day in and day that impact your health the most and are critical to maintain long term success in your health goals.  While it is fine to eat well for one day or to go for a walk once in a while, it is the little day to day actions that can affect your health the most.

Healthy habits don’t spring up right away, but repeating healthy behavior for three weeks could help reinforce behaviors. It has been shown that it takes 21 days to create a habit. So healthy habit can you try for three weeks that you want to integrate into your life?

Do you want to try exercising more often? Give a new routine a try for three weeks. If you can take the extra effort to work physical activity into your schedule, it becomes more habitual after three weeks.

Habits of course, are not always positive. They can negatively affect your goals as well. If you have the habit of hitting the snooze button when you have set your alarm clock to wake you up earlier to exercise, that can be considered a habit. Another bad habit is eating mindlessly while watching television. Both habits can be broken with a little persistence.

To break bad habits, replace them with new ones. For example, instead of hitting snooze, tell yourself you are going to get up just for today to exercise. It is hard to think about goals in the early morning, but if you tell yourself you are just going to do it for one day, it will be easier to get out of bed. After three weeks of “just trying it for one day”, you will have established a new habit. As for the mindless eating in front of the television, make a deal with a family member that for three weeks television and mealtime will be done separately.

Another way to establish a new habit is to make your new actions convenient for your life. If you live in an area where it rains often, plan to exercise indoors. The routine of exercising will be easier to develop into a habit that way. If you know that when you leave the office after a long day the last thing you want to do is exercise, plan to exercise in the morning a few days a week and on the weekends when you are less tired. This way you are more likely to stick to it long enough to establish a healthy habit.

What will your healthy habit for 2010 be?

* This blog was a collaborative effort between myself and Wini Linguvic, personal trainer to the stars. To learn more about Wini and her fitness philosophy –  log onto her website at www.bodychange.com or visit Amazon.com to purchase her books.