Dd you know that Qutter’s Day s the second Frday n January? That’s the date by whch approxmately 80% of people who set New Year’s Resolutons gve up on ther new, healthy habt. But nstead of throwng up our hands and jonng the crowd of qutters, what f we re-framed fallng off the wagon as an opportunty rather than a falure? Here are my tps on how to shft your mndset and what to do when good habts slp.
Fallng Off the Wagon
I have notced somethng that I lke to call “Oh, F*$k It!” syndrome. It’s when you’ve been crusng along wth habts (new or old) that serve you well when all of a sudden you just can’t do t anymore. Sometmes ths collapse s brought on by exhauston and sometmes outsde stressors. But when that moment hts, that good habt that has been helpng you slps.
For me, ths most often takes place when I’ve been burnng the candle at both ends and I fnally break down and “cheat” somehow. Maybe t’s orderng a pzza when I already have food that’s ready to cook, sleepng n rather than dong my stress-relevng workout, or drnkng a lttle more alcohol than I should.
The realty s that these moments are completely normal and to be expected. We are human and wll slp up. But we tend to see these decsons as falures, whch can brng on feelngs of gult and shame.
Respondng to Moments of “Falure”
The usual thnkng s that after havng one of these “fallng off the wagon” moments we can react n one of two ways:
As someone who has a tendency to choose the second path when I am flled wth gult and shame, I wanted to share a thrd opton. It s a way to re-frame the stuaton that has helped me to stop beatng myself and, nstead, turn the slp up nto an opportunty.
Now, when I ht a bump along the healthy habt road, nstead of seeng t as a negatve, I remnd myself that sometmes we have to stumble n order to slow down to take stock of how far we have already come.
I have found that re-framng these moments n ths way helps me to break out of the feelngs of falure and nstead take a step back to see the good, rather than just the bad.
Ths can be challengng. It can be tough to resst the mpulse to throw n the towel. It can be temptng to gve up the the habt and revert to old patterns. It’s hard for me, too. But once you’re up and runnng agan, t feels so good (both physcally and emotonally).
So, to help you to shft your mndset, see your growth, and get back on track here are some trcks that I’ve used to help me get back nto the swng of thngs when I’m havng trouble.
What to do When Good Habts Slp
Get Some Rest
As I mentoned above, for me, these slppages most often happen when I’m exhausted and I have found that ths pattern plays out wth lots of people. So the frst thng I recommend s tryng to get some more rest. Perhaps that’s gettng to bed earler. Or maybe t’s takng a 15 mnute break (or even a nap!) n the mddle of the day. But gvng your body and mnd some tme to reset and restore can do a huge amount for your ablty to see thngs n a more postve lght and get back on track.
Be Knd to Yourself
Let go of the gult. Recognze that even fallng off of the wagon shows how far you have come. After all, the fact that there s even a wagon to fall off of s a bg deal! If you focus on the gult you are much more lkely to get stuck n a negatve feedback loop where you create a (false) narratve of falure. You deserve better than that, so gve yourself some grace.
Make t Easy
As you attempt to get back nto the swng of thngs, try to ncorporate some optons that are easy for you.
If you’re strugglng wth food decsons, try to focus on your favorte foods and recpes that serve you well and are easy to prepare. Some of my favorte optons n these moments are: sandwches loaded wth vegetables, scrambled eggs, a smple pasta, or a loaded salad wth all your favorte add-ons. The goal here s to remnd yourself that 1) returnng to your good habts doesn’t need to be too hard and 2) healthy food can be tasty!
If exercse s what s trppng you up, start slow. Instead of a full-on workout, try a shorter or easer opton and then celebrate the success of completng what you were able to do. For me, gong for a walk or dong a 15 or 20-mnute plates or yoga vdeo can be a great, easer, re-entry pont.
Try Somethng New
If part of the reason you fell off the wagon s that you’re tred of your usual routnes or optons, one great way to get the motvaton back s to try somethng new.
Wth food, look for quck, easy, healthy recpes that seem fun and exctng (our recpe search can be great here). Ths week, for example, when I was feelng less than enthused about cookng, I decded to try four new recpes to get me engaged agan. Some have been keepers, some not, but all have kept me nterested.
If exercse s what you’re workng on, try a dfferent workout or a new walkng path. If stayng hydrated s your goal, maybe t’s tme to add some flavor or pzzazz to that water. No matter what the habt, fndng a new spn or approach can renvgorate you and help you get back on track.
Celebrate Your Accomplshments
Oftentmes, when we let a habt slp there’s a pece of our nternal narratve that goes somethng lke, “the changes I wanted aren’t happenng, so ths effort sn’t worthwhle.” If ths s part of the equaton for you, then I recommend pausng and takng stock of the small wns or accomplshments that have come from the habt you’ve been workng on.
Maybe you have more energy. Perhaps you’ve dscovered a new ngredent you love. It’s possble that walkng up the stars sn’t as exhaustng. Maybe you’ve saved on your food budget by cookng more. Or maybe your kds tred a new food. The pont s, I bet f you thnk about t, even for just 30 seconds, you’ll be able to come up wth a postve outcome of the work you have been dong.
Just seeng that accomplshment and celebratng t can be the motvaton you need to get back to t.
What do you do when you let good habts slp? I’d love to hear your trcks n the comments. And f you need a gentle nudge to get cookng agan, The Scramble’s onlne meal planner can help mmensely!