Making It A Habit

Today was weekday number 10 in a row that I went out for a run. That, to me, is impressive. It's important not to rest on my laurels though. Creating a habit, making running second nature to say, brushing my teeth (another habit I had to create!) is not easy. I read a report once that stated that you need to do something 27 times in a row when you are suppose to do them in order to train your body to accept a habit. Well, I'm at 10 and looking good! By my calculations this means that July 26th will be my habit day. This is the day my body is used to getting a run in on weekdays, as long as I don't fall off the wagon that is! I sound like an alcoholic now. Maybe they should give out chips for positive habits like running, learning new things, etc. That's not a bad idea. Maybe I will create some chips for running, writing, language learning, everything I want to accomplish in life. It's not much, but is a physical representative of my hard work. Might be useful.

Resolved: Turing a workout into a habit is worth celebrating.

For simplicity sake, I'll use 30 days in a row. Then, maybe give myself a chip at 60, 90, 6 months, a year, etc. I'm getting way ahead of myself though. Let's start my getting to this first milestone and making running a habit. I've found some good ideas in an article to help in this process.
Stay Consistent. Pick lunch or the morning and stay consistent with it. If its raining, try a treadmill or go after work, but shoot for lunch or morning each day!
Get a buddy. Get a buddy or others involved. Keep each other motivated. Maybe I can convince my wife to join me in our daily workout chip thingy.
Be imperfect. You might miss a day. You might fail. Everyone fails at one time or another. Be honest with yourself and simply start over if need be.
Use, "But". Stay motivated with the word "But". I might me really tired and not feel like running, but afterwards I will feel amazing and be proud of myself.
Associate with Role Models: Find someone who runs consistently and follow them on Twitter or what have you. Follow and contribute to a running Twitter thread or Facebook page.
Visualize: Visualize yourself with the negative. I.E. Not running. then, visualize yourself with the positive, I.E. running. Realize what the positive means to you and how it will positively affect your life.
Acknowledge Change: Do you feel better after a run? Do you have more energy that night or are you in a better mood with people? What changes can be made to the routine? Acknowledge the positives and learn from the negatives. I run and I feel better. I am nicer and interact with people in a more positive manner.
Do it for Yourself: You will never change something that isn't for you. Make the change or habit your own and embrace it.

That's all for now. I've lost count with counting calories. I'm still acknowledging what I eat and estimating my intake to around 2000 or so calories a day. But, specifics are rather difficult to remember without having some sort of live journal. Maybe look for one, Chris. Thanks for reading!

Until next time, trying to be honest with the world and myself.

Monday, July 11, 2011
Time Out: 12:12  Time In: 12:43
Distance: 2.85 miles
Walks: 2, Inhaler Use: 3
Distractions:
Depeche Mode, Policy of Truth
The CUre, Just Like Heaven
Spandau Ballet, True
Duran Duran, Rio
A-Ha, Take on Me
U2, With or Without You