Anatomy of a Habit
They say that it takes 21 days of repetition to establish a habit. I'm here to confirm that They are right.
I've been doing yoga consistently (3 or 4 days a week) since I returned from Rochester in February, but I've wanted to make it a more ingrained habit for myself. I didn't want to debate every morning at 5:15 AM whether I should go to yoga or not. So I decided to see how many days in a row I could go, without missing a class. Having just attended class every day for 25 days straight, I can confirm that now when I wake up there is no longer any debate in my head about whether I should go or not. I just get up, and go.
Here--in two-day increments--is what my habit formation looked like.
| Day | 5:15 AM -- Thoughts Before Yoga Class | |
| Day 1 | I want to do yoga, but I really don't want to do this right now. It's pitch dark out. I'll have to walk along the beach in the dark, with stray dogs yapping at my heels. Maybe I can start tomorrow... | |
| Day 3 | What was I thinking, agreeing to go to yoga class with Michelle? If I hadn't told her yes, I could just turn over and go back to sleep. But now, I have to go. | |
| Day 5 | Last time I got up this early for yoga, I was so tired by the end of the day. Do I really want to do that again? | |
| Day 7 | This is not a reasonable goal. I can't possibly get up at 5 AM every morning. So why bother? That's ridiculous. I'm just setting myself up to fail. | |
| Day 9 | I've been really good for a week. I think I can skip one day of yoga. It'll be my reward for attending for eight days straight. But it'll break my one-week streak...maybe I better stay with it. | |
| Day 11 xxxxx | Michelle can't go to yoga today. That gives me an excuse not to go either. | |
| Day 13 | Last time, the mosquitoes had a feast on me in class. (Sunrise -- prime time for yoga -- is also prime mosquito time). I know yoga is supposed to be good for you, but it won't be good for me if I get malaria. Maybe this isn't such a smart idea... | |
| Day 15 | Well OK, so there were no stray dogs yapping at my heels. They were all still sleeping. And it's amazing how many people were up taking their early morning walks, even though it was still before sunrise. | |
| Day 17 | I'm feeling kind of tired today, but I'll just go and do a gentle class today. I won't exert myself so much. | |
| Day 19 | The beach looks so serene just before sunset. This is a much better way to start the day, than rushing out of bed at the last minute. | |
| Day 21 | Alarm rings. Turn off alarm. Get up, get dressed, lather on the mosquito repellant, go to yoga. |
Basia....I second your view on habits....when I was staying alone in
chennai....I had more or less the same thoughts when I had to get up early
in the morning everyday and cook food...and now it has become a habit.....
I'm currently studying a lot of info for phase 4 of 7 phases for a
potential new job. I have to know over 74 definitions, verbatim, and
various signals/signs/warnings. I've been writing them over at least once a
day, but at the start, to get enthused was hard. There are 8 slots and 12
candidates, so I know I have to do this, if I succeed, the payoff is great,
more stress, but great none-the-less. I can identify with you and yoga, but
now for you, it's ingrained, just as I hope to have all the info I need to
know, ingrained.
Hilarious - this would make a good stand-up routine! But I hate to tell
you, even after 20 years of yoga, the inner dialogue still continues!
Meena: You get up early every morning to cook food?? Wow! It would
take a lot more than 21 days for me to ingrain that habit! ;o)
Thanks Basia! Of all the times that I have heard someone quote the infamous
source of "they say" no one has given me an actual website to go to for
verification. Regarding the repetition thing: it's a major component of
Sufi practice. The difference is the number of reps. Often a teacher gives
the student a practice of 99 or 101 times. My Sufi teacher suggested years
ago that I do 101 prosterations every evening before bed. Not only did I
not do the 101 but I continued to skip evenings until I fimally forgot
about the whole practice. Every so often I wonder what great shape
physically I would be in now if I had done the practice. Maybe if he had
said 21 times, it wouldn't have seem so daunting.