Why Your Current Habits are Destroying Your Fat loss Results

More than 40% of the actions you take in a day aren't decisions, they're habits. If we can alter your autopilot mode, we can destroy your bad habits and finally get you lean for good!

A habit can be described as;

a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up

You will spend approximately 40% of your day in autopilot

Your morning routine is probably very similar most days. From the way you brush your teeth, to the way you get your hair ready

Your drive to work will be habitual (I mean how much can you remember about your drive to work this morning?)

Even small things like the way you instinctively put your hand over your mouth when you cough or sneeze

But they can be anything. I recently read a story about a primary school teacher who left her job to work in a corporate firm. She found herself instinctively asking her colleagues if they'd washed their hands after going to the loo like she did with her 3-year-olds

These are all behaviours we perform every single day

Just like the way you're breathing while reading this. You're not consciously thinking about it right?

Our brain subconsciously repeats certain tasks and behaviour patterns throughout the day

So how can our habits lead to weight gain and make it so hard to stick to a healthier lifestyle?

THE HABIT LOOP

The habit loop is something I picked up from an incredible book called "Atomic Habits"

The author James Clear explains that there are 4 stages of a habit

1. Cue

2. Craving

3. Response

4. Reward

Let me try and get inside your head for a moment and predict how these 4 steps are causing you to gain weight

It's 7:30 pm and you're at home in front of the TV watching a movie (cue)

There's no point watching a movie without snacks right? (Craving), so you walk to the kitchen cupboard, grab the crisps and biscuits (response) and binge out on the sofa (reward)

Perhaps you've just taken your children to swimming club (cue)

You've packed up and are heading out the door when your children spot the vending machine (craving), so as a treat you buy them both some chocolate and something small for yourself (response)

Now you're driving home with a bag of malteasers on your lap (reward)

Maybe you're at your desk working and notice the clock strike 10:30 am which means it's time for a coffee break (cue), you head to the break room and make yourself a cup of tea

It would be rude to have a cuppa without a couple of biscuits right? (craving) so you grab a handful of digestives (response), sit down, put your feet up and enjoy your biccys with your break (reward)

Do any of these sound familiar? Do you see how those cues can cripple your fat loss results?

Can you now see why you keep getting cravings when you're watching TV, or on your lunch break!

Your body now associates you sitting down watching TV as a binge eating hot-spot and it wants its reward!

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