You may have noticed that changing old habits is always a challenge, especially when they are not very healthy. The truth is that there is no set recipe for changing habits, as each human being is unique and capable of defining their own limits.

Creating habits makes our day much easier. After all, have you ever imagined having to use willpower to perform simple tasks like taking a shower or brushing your teeth?

You need habits because change doesn't happen at the end of the process, but daily. In this article, we'll show you five tips to change a habit that you don't like. Come with us!

What is a habit, anyway?

In general terms, a habit is any activity that we do “without thinking”, almost automatically. A habit is already part of our routine and is practiced regularly without the need for major decision-making.

Although society is responsible for some habits that are implemented in general, each person is capable of developing their own habits.

The fact is that some habits, such as taking care of your health, maintaining friendships and family life, have scientific proof that they bring benefits to various areas of life. Now that you know what a habit is, understand how to change and build them next.

What is the best way to change a habit?

Every habit, without exception, is made up of 4 phases: Trigger, Desire, Routine and Reward, inspired by the theory in the book “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg.

Understanding how each one works helps you manipulate this process to your advantage.

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Trigger, or cue, tells the brain which routine should be started based on an event that sets the habit in motion.

For example: when you wake up, your brain activates habits such as brushing your teeth, making your bed or having breakfast. The cue is the fact that you wake up. From the moment you get up, several actions occur without the need for reasoning.

Desire

Desire is what fuels the habit and makes it happen. Every habit aims to satisfy a desire, whether conscious or not. Being constantly connected to social media arises from the desire to be closer to people, for example.

Routine

It is characterized as what we already do on autopilot, it is the habit itself, like closing the door as soon as we leave the house. Normally, we do it unconsciously in search of some reward.

Reward

This is where our brain wants to get to when we perform a habit: it wants to be rewarded and sees the need to memorize the process. In the last phase, this is when an activity becomes a habit.

An example of this is when we practice physical activity and the body releases dopamine (a neurotransmitter that regulates mood and stress), which brings a feeling of pleasure.

How to acquire new habits?

According to studies conducted by University College London, it takes an average of 66 days to create a new habit in our routine. Check out the five steps to adopting a habit change, according to science.

1- Create micro-habits

The experience of starting a new habit is complex, which is why many scholars recommend starting little by little with so-called “micro-habits.” This is the case of American scientist Brian Jeffery Fogg, who proposes establishing more objective goals to achieve your objective.

In other words, if you want to read a book a month, specify how many pages you need to read per day, without pain and without the burden of obligation. After all, less is more.

2- Establish a repetition frequency

Furthermore, for a change to become gradual, easy and natural for our brain, repetition is essential. This is very important for practicing physical activities. At first, you will need more discipline to be regular. This is because a habit is born when you perform it in your routine without difficulty.

3- Start slowly

Another important point is not to try to change several habits at once, willpower has a limit and establishing several "micro-habits" that you will not be able to fulfill can leave you discouraged.

Carefully plan the purpose of your change, what the first steps will be and where you want to go. Haste is the enemy of perfection.

4- Get back to your goal even after you fail

The motto you will follow when trying to make an activity a habit is: if you can't do your routine one day, come back the next. After all, failure doesn't mean you have to give up.

Avoiding situations that trigger your old habits helps you not to fail in this process. When we activate the trigger that starts a habit, it is very difficult to stop our action.

In this sense, identify what your triggers are to protect yourself from them, okay?

5- Celebrate your victories

It’s common to let some victories slip by when creating a new habit. But paying attention to your victories is essential to generating the motivation needed to avoid self-sabotage.

Have you managed to complete your “micro-habit”? Allow yourself a reward, something valuable to you but that doesn’t ruin your progress.

So, ready to change a habit?

Whether it’s exercising, maintaining a healthy eating routine, improving your performance at the gym, quitting smoking or cutting down on sugar in your routine, you need to put your goals into practice. Stay tuned for more health and lifestyle content, as well as recipes with our BOLD protein bars with surreal flavors.