You Can Change Your Lifestyle, But You’ll Have to Commit and Work at it
Change can come about, but you have to work at it and commit yourself. Motivation may not always come easily but can come from unexpected places. Change your lifestyle the right way!
Focus on building one habit at a time to maximize success; any attempt at changing multiple things at once may cause confusion and lead to less permanent changes.
How to Change Your Lifestyle
Lifestyle changes can help improve many areas of your life, but to make a success of them you need a clear plan and an actionable timeline in place to start out slowly and be aware of setbacks. If your goal is to walk more, write out an actionable schedule stating when and how often you will exercise as well as the length of walking time per session; keep this visible so that it reminds you of your goals.
Modifying your lifestyle can be daunting, particularly if you want to change multiple habits at the same time. Try breaking it down slowly by gradually adding in new behaviors; any setbacks should not discourage you from continuing this path toward living a healthier and happier lifestyle.
Physical Changes
Doing something differently such as exercising more, eating healthier, or cutting down caffeine consumption requires breaking or replacing old habits, so find something that works for you and make the change gradual. For example, instead of diving headfirst into marathon training without ever running before doing any mileage at all, take two or three miles every week at first until your mileage increases gradually and feels sustainable for you1. This will give you the confidence to continue making positive changes and be successful in making changes over time1.1
Psychological changes include shifts in your mood and stress management habits.
Psychological Changes
Psychological changes can be brought on by trauma, loss, or hardship and often leave us craving a change. People often become exhausted with life; each day becomes an endless loop without anything to look forward to or get excited about.
As soon as these events arise, individuals can start exploring new choices and adopting lifestyles that make them feel more alive. But it is essential that any such changes be carefully considered; any sudden shift could end up backfiring and leading to additional suffering.
Therapists, coaches, and counselors can be invaluable resources in developing and implementing an action plan tailored specifically for you. You might also consider online therapy or mindfulness meditation to manage stress and build new neural pathways to facilitate success. While the process can be long and hard to go through, perseverance will bring positive psychological changes over time.
Behavioral Changes
Forming lasting behavioral changes requires time, commitment, and effort. Anyone who has attempted but failed to keep a New Year’s resolution knows just how difficult this can be; but don’t despair: lasting behavioral change is possible! One approach that has proven its efficacy is the transtheoretical model of behavior change.
Step one is pre-contemplation. In this stage, individuals contemplate changing an unhealthy habit and understand its negative repercussions for both lifestyle and health. They consider how change could bring advantages such as improved lifestyle choices and better outcomes.
At this stage, people decide to change a bad habit and begin planning for their future. Starting small such as purchasing a gym membership or enrolling in fitness classes may help kick-start the change process; further research could reveal strategies for overcoming obstacles to change such as identifying triggers and devising ways of avoiding them; moreover, they learn about the advantages of healthy habits like regular exercising and adequate restful sleep each night.
