Summertime is the perfect time of the year to start shifting into more healthy habits. With the surplus of delicious fruits and the blooming nature beckoning you outdoors, this is the easiest time to jump into exercise, healthy eating, and any other healthy habits you are hoping to make. So, take advantage of this perfect time of year to start shifting your habits and living a healthier and happier life!

See Below for 8 Strategies to Make Your Healthy Habits Stick This Summer!

1. Define Your Habits

The first step to making healthy habits is figuring out what those habits are. This step requires a good amount of self-awareness for you to be able to look at what you are doing now and figure out what’s not working. This can often be hard for people to do because we frequently don’t want to admit when we are wrong. But by being able to notice and understand when you are fostering unhealthy habits in your life, then you can actually start to do something to change it.

2. Make a Schedule

Once you figure out what habits you want to start changing, the most important thing is to make a game plan. To get this accomplished, it is as simple as drawing out a calendar on a piece of paper or on a whiteboard in your room and planning one thing every day. Try to keep this calendar somewhere you can always see it to remind you to stick to your new habits. Make sure to start slowly at first to help you ease into your new habits. Although going cold turkey can certainly be good in some cases, many people have a hard time sticking out those habits in the long-term. So, a better alternative is to try to gradually ease yourself into your new healthy habit instead.

3. Track Your Progress

To see if your healthy habit plan is actually working, tracking your progress along the way is an essential strategy for success. By tracking how much time you spend doing your new healthy habit and noting when you slip up occasionally, you can start to see some underlying patterns that may be blocking you from success. That way you can look at the bigger picture and try to root out what might be preventing you from keeping your new healthy habit from sticking.

4. Be Patient

With any new habit, patience is key. Overnight transformation is extremely difficult, and most people cannot accomplish that. Forming a new habit takes time, so be patient with yourself! People often say that it can take anywhere from 3 weeks to a few months to form a new healthy habit. So, if you are still struggling for a while, cut yourself some slack and recognize that forming new habits takes a lot of time. But with constant effort, slowly but surely, you will get there!

5. Allow Some Flexibility

People often approach a new habit with an all-or-nothing approach. But this method of habit formation can actually prevent you from making any changes. By allowing yourself some slip-ups and the occasional cheat day, you can keep your momentum going in the long-term. With the all-or-nothing approach, when you miss only one day, it can cause a huge knock to your self-esteem and prevent you from pushing forward. But new habits take perseverance and consistency, so if you slip up today then just commit to trying again the next day!

6. Get Outdoors

In the summertime, the best way to start a healthy habit is by taking it outdoors. In other seasons of the year, you cannot enjoy the beautiful nature and sun as much, making it harder for you to want to go for a jog around the block or on a hike. So, take advantage of the summertime weather and enjoy the outdoors. Being in nature is a healthy habit on its own as well!

7. Work Together

One of the best ways to make a healthy habit stick is by having an accountability buddy. When you work together with a friend or family member, you can both hold each other accountable for your new healthy habits. This is where peer pressure actually comes in handy! So, try asking your friends and family to join you in your new healthy habits. By working together, you are all much more likely to stay consistent with your new habits and when times get tough you can work to motivate each other in those moments as well.

8. Make it Fun

Summertime is a fun time of year, so use this time to make your healthy habits a bit more fun as well! To truly integrate your new healthy habits into your life, joy is an essential piece to the process. If you cannot find any happiness or joy in your habits, then you are much more likely to give them up easier. But in the beginning, it can be difficult to find that joy. So, try to make it as fun as you can. If your new healthy habit is to cook healthy food, then try following some fun cooking videos and playing your favorite tunes while you cook along. If your new healthy habit is exercise, then try doing a dance party or a fun exercise routine a few days out of the week. By incorporating some fun into your healthy habits, they may actually become something you look forward to doing instead of something you need to force.

Summary

By shifting your habits, you can truly transform your life, and summertime is the best time of year to accomplish those goals. During the summer, nature is flourishing, there is a more vibrant energy in the air, and more people are getting outside. That’s why summertime is often the easiest time to start making new healthy habits. So, take advantage of the gifts that the summer can provide to you and start working to change your habits today!

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