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Grassroots with passion
HOW LONG TO TURN NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS INTO HABITS?
66 days to build a new habit In a study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology , Phillippa Lally, health psychology researcher at University College London, and her research team examined the habits of 96 people over a 12-week period. Each person chose one new habit for the 12 weeks and reported each day on whether or not they did the behaviour and how automatic the behaviour felt. The researchers then analysed the data to determine how long it took each person to go from starting a new behaviour to automatically doing it. The result? On average, it takes more than two months – 66 days, to be precise – before a new behaviour becomes automatic.
Lose weight. Exercise more. Eat more healthily. Save more. Spend quality time with family. We’ve all been there and done that. Year after year, we try our hardest (or so we tell ourselves) to stick to a worthy new year resolution. But eventually we lose heart. Mere weeks into January, disheartened by the little weight we’ve lost – either put off by the thought of another salad or loath to hit the gym when we are exhausted or both – we give up. Good news, bad news Here’s the good news… and the bad… about New Year resolutions. The good: It is indeed possible to make a good habit stick, but the bad news is it will take longer than you think. A study found that 46% of participants who made common New Year resolutions such as weight loss, exercise programmes and quitting smoking were likely to succeed. This is more than 10 times the success rate of those who decided to make life changes at other times of the year. The bad news however, is that you will have to stick to your resolutions for months before they stick and become your new habits. How many months exactly? Science says slightly over two months.
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