How to capture meditation habits with the help of behavioral science
How to capture meditation habits with the help of behavioral science
keep your yoga practice alive and healthy
There are times when we practice a lot, and times when practicing falls by the wayside. Since the closures are canceled and summer is on the horizon, the yoga practices that we care so carefully can take a back seat, while other activities attract our attention and time. We know that exercise receives and nourishes us with diligence and regularity. So how can we make sure that we stick to good habits without losing them?
If you are among the people who live according to the motto "Discipline is freedom", you may have no problem here. But if it was a long-long stop-and-start trip, like me, to develop a consistent practice, these are a few ideas that could help:
remember your motivation (why)
Have you ever thought about where your motivation to do something comes from? There is good evidence that if motivation is intrinsic (for the sake of our own joy or satisfaction) and not extrinsic (for external rewards such as money or praise), these corresponding behavior is easier to maintain. Intrinsic motivators are geared towards their values and beliefs, things that are important to them personally. They feed a strong internal drive to continue. Do you deliberately remember the reasons why you practice yoga, and if you have never practiced the question "Why do I practice yoga?" have thought, try to put it.
they chop their surroundings (where and how)
The administration of your surroundings is a simple and effective way to support sustainable behavior. To give an example, a way to avoid unhealthy food, it is not to buy it! If it is not in the house, it cannot be eaten if it is bored or tired. By not having the food there, the willpower (the lack of it) becomes irrelevant. Your environment can be manipulated to promote the positive behaviors you want to maintain, as well as those who want to avoid.
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Try to make things visible that encourage you to act. Put your yoga clothing or mat in the evening before practicing. Design your practice room in a place where you like to be, maybe with a nice candle or plant. If you do not have your own space, objects like a favorite meditation pillow, which you accompany you from room to room (or on vacation), create a strong association with a familiar ritual.
reduce and display (how long)
ambitious goals can help some people remain motivated. However the overall picture may look for you, it is important to make something realistic in now. When building a habit, duration trumps the duration. Have you ever heard the sentence "the most difficult thing to show up"? The repetitive action, to appear again and again, helps to create a habit that continues.
so you said to yourself that you would meditate 30 minutes every day? Maybe it started, but somehow lost. Try to reduce it, but continue. When building consistency, ten minutes are somewhat, as are five minutes and a single minute. If you reduce, take measures to take measures less difficult and easier to achieve. So make it super easy if necessary. Steps of how small you may be help you to move in the right direction and to build something bigger in a natural way. A single moment daily mindfulness, if we choose it, can have profound effects.
add (when)
Adding a habit to an existing one is another good tip. The brain loves associations and quickly establishes connections. A morning or evening practice before or after brushing your teeth enables you, for example, to link your practice with something you are already doing. By combining the two activities, the brain no longer has to build up the swing to make a new decision and helps to avoid every part of the thinking spirit that blocks the way to direct action.
share (with whom)
tell your loved ones why your practice is important to you so that you can support you. When we tell others about our efforts, it helps us to be responsible (not just ourselves) (not just ourselves) and give us an excuse less to get out. When we attend a regular course, we not only gain by learning and sharing, but also by the fact that we are committed to a time and a place. If we also spend time with others who share our love to practice, we find an entire community of support and encouragement - a tribe of like -minded people who inspire us to continue growing.
celebrate and enjoy
bj fogg, author of "Tiny Habits", says that positive emotions create habits and that enjoyment is the key. If your practice does not already give you this immediate happy feedback, we are less inclined to continue. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why calm meditation practice can be less tempting than a guaranteed endorphin-rich Vinyasa flow. Rewards, however small they may be, freeze a dose of the feel-good hormone dopamine that occurs when reading an SMS or checking off a to-do list (my personal favorite). Treat yourself to this satisfactory sense of achievement in a tangible way. Perhaps use a phone tracker or an app to help. As it turns out, golden stars are not only for children!
don't judge (be nice to yourself)
If the daily practice that you may have sought out of the window did not be hard to yourself. If we do not achieve what we have decided, we tend to see it as a failure. Can we change our perception of what fails? 'Failure' offers ripe conditions for growth and is probably a valuable part of everything it is worth pursuing. If we look at our efforts with compassion and become our own cheerleaders, we can avoid this "all-or-nothing" thinking that tempts us to give up.
and remember there are times when do not practice can be the right one. When the time comes, Yoga will always be there, ready and waiting. Remember that you can start again , at any time, many times.
habits are automatically and effortless by definition. They are behaviors that are so stable and rooted that they no longer need energy to maintain them. It takes time and repetitions to build them up.
How the many tools of yoga itself help us deliberate repeated actions to go a long way so that hacks can eventually become superfluous. Perhaps one day you will notice that yoga ends with becoming something that you do, but more like something you are and an integrated part of your life. James Clear, author of "Atomic Habits", says that behavioral change is a change in identity, and says: "Every action you do is a voice for the person you want to be". So be aware of it, be specific and, above all, continue.
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From the pen of yogamatt