Adding Healthy Habits vs. Breaking Bad Ones

Trying to live a healthier lifestyle can be overwhelming with all the so-called “bad” foods and habits out there that you’re allegedly supposed to cut out cold-turkey to reach your goals. That’s why one of my strategies has always been to ADD things I know are good for me—instead of vowing to remove all the things viewed as more negative.

If you’re anything like me, habits and routines make you feel comfortable. They make you feel grounded, allow you to go on autopilot for parts of your day, and often provide some sort of satisfaction. Trying to go without these habits that are so engrained in your routine can feel unnatural and be shockingly hard to break.

On top of that, the more you want to break a habit, the more you’ll probably obsess about it. So you’re thinking about it even more than normal, making it even harder to let go of. Or, maybe you’re doing great for awhile completely cutting it out, but depriving yourself from that habit leads to you falling back on it…hard.

This vicious cycle of trying to stop the things that aren’t good for me and failing to succeed long-term can be very discouraging and lead to me beating myself up for not being able to stick with what I know is good for me. Enter: change of perspective.

By incorporating more positive habits, the ones that aren’t contributing to my healthy lifestyle can just gradually get…pushed out of the picture—hopefully without making you feel like you’re making drastic lifestyle changes all the time.

With Lent coming up this Wednesday, I know a lot of people are about to start working on cutting the “bad” things out of their life. I’ve always liked the idea of adding “good” things, though, because it can feel more rewarding and less restrictive. For example: adding nutritious foods vs. cutting out all the empty calories. The concept of eating more vegetables sounds a whole lot more appealing than swearing to never eat chips again.

The more you make these healthy habits part of your routine, the better you should feel—which can be a huge motivator for phasing out the things that are holding you back.

Here’s a look at some of the things I’m constantly trying to do more of, compared to habits I want to stop doing:

Spend More Time with Positive People (vs. gossiping with others). Complaining less and trying not to judge others does wonders for your happiness.

Drink More Water (vs. swearing off pop/soda). Once I started to drink more water, I felt more hydrated (duh) and didn’t feel as hooked to caffeine and sugar.

Get More Sleep (vs. stop staying up so late). Setting a goal of 8 hours each night has done wonders for how I feel during the day. I’m all about going to bed earlier at this point in my life.

Eat More Vegetables (vs. never eat indulgent snacks). This is one I’m really working on lately. As I follow my own tips for eating more veggies, I’m anxious to see if I end up eating less processed foods.

Read More Books (vs. watch less TV). I love to binge-watch shows, but I don’t want to spend my free time doing mindless activities all the time. Reading for even just 10-15 minutes before bed has felt a lot more productive.