As we get older, our health can change significantly, and when we face these obstacles to living a happier life, we are told that we have to make changes to our health, or face the consequences. The big problem in doing this is that we end up trying to completely overhaul our habits. But this sets us up for failure. Changing your health is about altering one thing at a time. But why is this, and how can you do it effectively?
It Gives You More Strength
Changing one habit at a time is the best way to tell yourself that you can accomplish your goals. When it comes to something like giving up smoking, you can swap a cigarette for a C Cell vape and if you change nothing else in your life, it gives you that mental strength, so you can focus on giving up that habit.
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Doing One Thing at a Time Doesn’t Feel So Overwhelming
We live a life of numerous stresses and pressures, and when we have to undertake a multitude of changes, it can be too much for us to cope with. When we are feeling overwhelmed, this is when we make bad choices and give into bad habits. Doing one thing at a time gives us the perspective to focus on that change, without feeling like we’ve got to have a whole heap of stress along with it.
It Increases the Likelihood of Changing Other Behaviors
There are studies that say you can give up two things at a time, but as long as they are related. For example, if you are looking to get healthier, it can benefit you to incorporate healthy eating into your life at the same time.
It Increases Accountability
When we are determined to give up a number of stresses or temptations in our lives, we can very easily blame external circumstances. If we focus on giving up one thing at a time, making only one significant change makes us accountable. It can be more beneficial to have an accountability partner in these situations, and when we are focusing on something like getting fitter, having someone else go through the same thing also instills a healthy sense of competition.
You Can Feel the Sense of Accomplishment in a Measured Way
If we are to change multiple aspects of our lives, it feels more arduous, and we can only look back on our successes after a long period of time. For example, going cold turkey feels horrible at the time, which is why there’s a significant number of relapses associated with the practice. When we give up one thing at a time or make a swap, the ability to focus and maintain discipline in this one area means that we can celebrate these achievements in a far better way. When we feel accomplished, which can be after a few weeks of practicing this new habit, we then have the ability to focus on another one. Because we’ve overcome one hurdle, this gives us the strength to carry on.
It is all about taking those steps at a time, but it all begins with one small change.
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