If you made New Year’s resolutions this year, it’s time to take stock of them. One month has passed and there’s a good chance you fall into one of these three categories:
You have kept all your resolutions and are very proud of yourself. Treat yourself to your favorite Italian dish, ziti al forno.
You have kept some of your resolutions, but not others. Treat yourself to ziti, but without “al forno.”
You have failed to keep any of your resolutions and have decided to keep all your bad habits until 2026. Treat yourself to a zit.
I made only two resolutions this year, one pertaining to reading and the other to writing. My writing resolution lasted two weeks, while my reading resolution lasted two days. I was proud of myself for those two days though.
Should I wait until 2026 to try again? No, I’m going to jump-start both resolutions again tomorrow (Feb. 1). I’m going to climb back on the wild horse that threw me off, hoping that this time I’ll be able to tame it.
Just because you’ve failed once doesn’t mean you’ll keep failing. For evidence of this, look no further than Donald Trump. It took him many tries, but he finally managed to stick to his habit of blaming someone every day.
Some of the good habits I have today, such as exercising regularly and brushing my teeth at night, are ones that I struggled with for many years. But I kept trying and failing — until I finally succeeded.
There’s a common belief that it takes 21 days for a new habit to form. If you just keep doing something for three weeks, it will be part of your routine and you won’t need much willpower to keep it going. After pushing yourself to avoid alcohol for 21 days, you’ll have no trouble sipping a Fanta at a party, while your friends are all enjoying cocktails. But you are only sipping a fantasy.
Habits can take a lot longer than 21 days to form, as a study co-authored by Dr. Ben Singh has shown.
Singh and other researchers at University of South Australia conducted a systematic review of 20 studies involving 2,601 participants and found that health-related habits take about two months to form, but this can vary considerably from one person to another. It might take my wife, for example, just four days to adopt the habit of going for a 6 a.m. walk, but it might take me almost a year to adopt the habit of waking up at 6 a.m. and saying, “Enjoy your walk, dear!”
The research team, whose study was published in the journal Healthcare, found that certain factors can help you be more successful in creating a new habit.
Frequency is important. It’s easier to make a habit of something you do every day than something you do three times a week. That’s why I try to get at least a little exercise every day.
Timing is also important, Singh said. “If you add a new practice to your morning routine, the data shows that you’re more likely to achieve it.”
This is true. When my kids went off to college, they had no trouble adding a new habit to their morning routines on Saturdays and Sundays: sleeping past noon.
“You’re also more likely to stick to a new habit if you enjoy it,” Singh said.
That’s why many people listen to music while they exercise. I enjoy challenging myself in the gym, trying to run on the treadmill or lift weights a little less awkwardly than I did before. Most of all, I enjoy the feeling I get when I’ve finished exercising and can be a slouch the rest of the day.
