The power of habits — how I managed to build long term habits & stick to them

So, What changed?

The biggest change can be attributed to my mindset, wherein, I focused on consistency rather the results.

Earlier, I would think of failures in a different way. For example: If I was not able to do an asana perfectly or if my practice got interrupted for a single day I would feel that all my progress was lost. I changed this.

I focused on a single habit rather than trying to form multiple new habits and gave prominence to practicing yoga everyday.

How did it begin?

By sheer chance I attended a session on how to form habits with The Habit Coach ~ Ashdin Doctor. This statement 👇🏾 of his was profound.

“A habit is nothing but an act that is repeated every single day. If you miss 2 days in a row then you have fallen out of the habit.”

Ashdin Doctor.

I enrolled myself into a 21 day Yoga program, followed by a 7 day residential program to remove distractions. Eventually, I traveled for 2 months and kept Yoga and meditation as my primary focus.

I wasn’t the most regular during this time but I was mindful and equipped myself with books like Atomic Habits and The 5 AM Club to help me with structure, motivation and best practices.

What were the challenges?

Continuity was, is and will be the biggest challenge. Starting something new is easy but consistency isn’t and we all know that.

I had to work extremely hard on reducing distractions and this meant saying “NO” to a lot of friends, family and socialising. It was really hard in the beginning but got easier as time went by.

Initially, I would fall ill quite often and this would mean breaks. I kept reminding myself that this is all part of the process.

Behavioural realisation

Change can only begin upon realisation. One day I realised that I disliked the whole pre-workout routine.

I found commute to the gym, preparing my bag, leaving the house, getting ready, etc. to be mundane and discouraging.

To fix this, I decided I will practice at home with the help of an application called Down Dog.

What changes have I noticed?

Besides the reading, realisations and advice, I read somewhere ~ “One cannot expect the body to be fit, flexible or strong in 30, 60, 90 days when you have had bad habits over 20 years.” (20 years = 7300 days)

This made so much sense to me that it has helped me stay consistent.

The longer I worked out the easier it got and overtime I started noticing some benefits which include:

1. I have gained muscle mass, I am stronger, fitter & more flexible than I have ever been in my life.
2. Unwanted fat – I have lost fat from my stomach, face, etc. something I never believed that I could, now I do.
3. My mental health has improved by multiple folds.
4. Knee pain – something I struggled with in the past, is a thing of the past.
5. My concentration and focus has improved. I can work longer with better productivity as compared to before.
6. Habit stacking – I have been able to stack multiple habits on the back on this one habit.

In Conclusion

Over the year I have built multiple new GOOD habits that have combined and helped me grow as a person. Intermittent Fasting is another one.

If I can do it, so can you. I had to make several mental adjustments, but the key was to stick with it.

Everyone is different and so identifying what you like/dislike is important. What works for me may not work for you and vice versa.

Your turn – what is that one habit that you have had and are proud of, or one that you are struggling to build? Reach out, I am happy to help.