How to make a Habit

I know that changing my diet means breaking old habits and forming new ones. To learn more about how to make new habits that last, I read these two articles about habit forming.

How Long to Form a Habit? & Habit Formation:The 21-Day Myth

The first article states that for participants in a study, "the average [time to make a new habit] was 66 days, [but] there was marked variation in how long habits took to form, anywhere from 18 days up to 254...." The second article confirmed that the idea of forming new habits in 21 days is a myth. This idea is actually based on a study that stated that it takes a patient about 21 days to get used to things like, losing a limb or having a new face from plastic surgery... nothing to do with the formation of lasting habits.

I particularly like the second article because it explains the three stages that a person goes through when trying to form a new habit.

The 3 Phases of a New Habit

1. The Fun Phase - Everything is easy and fun in this stage. You are excited about this new thing in your life
2. The Suck Phase - Everything sucks and you may resent things. This is harder than you thought it would be, and it's no longer fun, nor do you feel excited about this anymore.
3. The Easy Phase - This new thing doesn't feel so had anymore. It becomes automatic, similar to muscle memory.

To get through the Suck Phase, the second article offers some advice that I've summed up below.

• Recognize that this is not going to be easy, but remind yourself that you CAN do it.
• Ask 2 important questions, "How will I feel if I do this?" & "How will I feel if I don't do this?"
• Imagine what your life will be like in five years after making this commitment to change. Imagine what life will be like in five years if you don't make this change.

I'm not sure how long the Fun Phase will last for me in the new year... I have a feeling the Suck Phase will last a while (or at least it will feel like it), but I'm determined to make it to the easy phase.

On a side note, today one of my bosses mentioned that it's usually arround April each year that people really give up on New Year's resolutions: gym memberships drop, people go back to eating the way they did before, ect. I figure that if I can make it through May without falling off the path of healthy eating, then I can consider my habits changed for the better. (I'm also hoping that by May I will have discovered if I am gluten/lactose intolerant, and thus eased the symptoms of my TRAPS Syndrome.)