I’ll be honest, I have ALOT of Bad Habits. I go to bed too late and wake up too early. I over exercise when I’m feeling stressed. And I bury myself in work in order to distract myself when my personal life is chaotic and/or in turmoil.

Ofcourse we all have our own coping mechanisms that we use when dealing with the everyday trials and tribulations of life. Some of us turn to food. Some of us turn to Online Shopping. Some of us turn to drugs and alcohol. And then there are those people like myself that use actives such as exercise and work as a distraction so that they don’t have to deal with the harsh realities of life at times.

I’ve heard that it takes 21 Days to develop a good habit and remain consistent with performing that habit on a regular basis. In my opinion and in my experience with working with the general population for the past 20+ years, this is a fairly accurate assessment.

With that said, I often find myself wondering how long would it take to break a bad habit though? And if one were to break that habit, what would be the best approach to use while trying to break it?

Easier Said Then Done

I hate it when motivational speakers tell us that we just need to “shut up and do it!” Or inspirational YouTube Videos tell us “No Excuses!”.

Fuck, I don’t know about you, but sometimes I don’t feeling like just doing it. And occasionally I do have a fairly valid excuse not to do something that I know will be good for both my mind and my body. Therefore rather than tell us to “just go do it!”, what I wish these Motivational Speakers and Inspirational YouTubers would tell us is HOW to break our bad habits while developing good ones.

Telling someone who is an Emotional Eater to just stop eating when they are sad or stressed is not what I would consider constructive advice. Hell, it’s not even good advice! Telling a Video Game Addict to get off his or her ass and go outside, is not providing a solution to their addiction. Yelling and screaming at someone to make a change in their life and do something that you want them to do, rarely if ever works. Trust me when I tell you this as I gave up on this approach years ago when I first started training and coaching clients.

So what should we do? How can we break our bad habits? And are these bad habits even worth breaking?

There’s a Solution to Every Problem

I absolutely love problem solving. Obstacles and barriers create challenges in life. And how a man or woman overcomes these challenges defines who he or she is as a person. A weak minded person will give up early and quit when problems arise. Whereas someone who has a strong mindset, understands that there is a solution to the problem in which they are facing and that it will just take time, effort and energy on their part, in order to find that solution to the problem in which they are having.

Ofcourse in the midst of chaos and crisis it can be difficult to remain calm and composed at times. However a strong minded person sets aside the time needed in order to learn the skillset and acquire the tools needed in order to remain focused and determined on overcoming any and all obstacles, regardless of how big or small they might be.

So How Do We Break Our Bad Habits?

1) Define Your Bad Habit – What exactly is your bad habit that you are doing repeatedly?

2) Why Is It Important For You To Break This Habit? – Once you have a reason to break this habit, you will be more motivated and disciplined on the process that it will take to actually break it for good.

3) What Triggers Your Bad Habit From Occurring? – Do you overeat because you are stressed? Do you drink excessively because you are depressed? Do you make extravagant purchases for unnecessary items because you are bored? Once you figure out what is triggering your bad habits from occurring you can find ways in which to stop these triggers from happening before they even have a chance to begin.

You CAN Break Your Bad Habit(s)!

I’ve been helping people transform their physiques and better their health for over two decades now. And during this time, I’ve seen some incredible transformations, both physically and mentally. I’ve seen smokers who would easily smoke a pack a day, quit because they wanted to set a good example for their kids. I’ve seen alcoholics trade in the booze for the weights because they wanted to live a sober and productive life, rather than one seen through beer googles. I’ve seen people who were morbidly obese, put in the time, effort and disciplined needed with their training and their diet, because they didn’t want to die of a heart attack at 40 years old.

And because I’ve seen and been a part of all this for the better part of the past 20 years, I KNOW that YOU CAN break your bad habits as well.

Yes, it will be challenging. Yes, it will be painful. Yes, you will get frustrated. Yes, you will breakdown. And Yes, you will fail a few times. But I promise you that if you remain focused on why you need to break these habits and consistent on the actions necessary in order to break these habits, then you WILL eventually break your bad habits once and for all.

So don’t just shut up and do it. Don’t be afraid of even making a few excuses along the way. But DO NOT give up on your goal to improve your body, your health and your overall quality of life.

After all, giving up is just another bad habit……

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance