Thread by @SlowwCo

I've decided I'm going to be the type of person who takes a walk daily.

There are countless body, mind, and spirit benefits to walking.

I'm on my 6th consecutive day.

(THREAD // HOW TO BUILD GOOD HABITS)

I'm referencing my notes from "Atomic Habits" by @JamesClear to put them to the test (turning inspiration into action).

One big thing that stuck with me from the book is:

"Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become."

sloww.co/atomic-habits-…

Three Layers of Behavior Change:

- Changing your identity (what you believe, who we wish to become)

- Changing your process (what you do)

- Changing your outcomes (what you get, what they want to achieve)

Systems > Goals

"My results had very little to do with the goals I set and nearly everything to do with the systems I followed." @JamesClear

I have no end goal associated with this habit. Instead, I'm just showing up daily.

Environment > Motivation

"Motivation Is Overrated; Environment Often Matters More…" @JamesClear

Walking has a low environmental barrier to entry. Put on your shoes (or don't), and go outside.

Frequency > Time

"There is nothing magical about time passing with regard to habit formation...What matters is the rate at which you perform the behavior...It’s the frequency that makes the difference." @JamesClear

My frequency is 1x/day (no specific distance/time of walk).

I've also found building consecutive day streaks is beneficial for momentum.

I don't ever want to break the streak, but if I do...

Simple Rule: "Never miss twice…Missing once is an accident. Missing twice is the start of a new habit." @JamesClear

HOW TO BUILD GOOD HABITS // The 1st Law (Cue): Make it Obvious

"Most common cues are time and location." @JamesClear

I'm using time-blocking on my calendar to walk at the same time daily.

HOW TO BUILD GOOD HABITS // The 2nd Law (Craving): Make it Attractive

"A craving is created when you assign meaning to a cue." @JamesClear

I know how I feel after working out (and how I feel if I don't), so this positive energy/mood booster is enough of a craving for me.

HOW TO BUILD GOOD HABITS // The 3rd Law (Response): Make it Easy

"You just need to get your reps in." @JamesClear

Walking has a low environmental barrier to entry. Put on your shoes (or don't), and go outside.

HOW TO BUILD GOOD HABITS // The 4th Law (Reward): Make it Satisfying

"Cardinal Rule of Behavior Change: What is immediately rewarded is repeated." @JamesClear

No extrinsic reward associated here. The intrinsic reward is enough for me with this habit.

HABIT FORMULA // Implementation Intention:

"I will (BEHAVIOR) at (TIME) in (LOCATION)"

I will walk after lunch at home.

HABIT FORMULA // Habit Stacking:

"After (CURRENT HABIT), I will (NEW HABIT)"

After walking, I will lift weights for 15-30 minutes.

(Note: I'm not yet doing this, but I think this would be a natural habit to stack with walking)

HABIT FORMULA // Habit Stacking + Habit Tracking:

"After (CURRENT HABIT), I will (TRACK MY HABIT)"

After walking, I will review what was tracked (using phone data). It's a good feeling to see the number of steps tracked daily.

"The holy grail of habit change is not a single 1 percent improvement, but a thousand of them. It’s a bunch of atomic habits stacking up, each one a fundamental unit of the overall system."

― @JamesClear