As humans, we are deeply habitual creatures. Routines and patterns are woven into our DNA, and this intrinsic need for structure has fuelled our innovation, sharpened our survival instincts, and turned our species into one of the most adaptive and influential on the planet.
Much of our success stems from the brain’s highly developed quick-thinking regions. We have the prefrontal cortex handling rapid decision making and intuitive responses, while the basal ganglia are busy supporting habit formation and automatic behaviours. These systems allow us to act swiftly and efficiently, often without conscious thought. We feel hungry, we seek food. We feel tired, we sleep. More critically, our quick thinking can save our lives – like slamming on the brakes when danger appears on the road ahead.
Yet we are not governed by reflex alone. We are also creatures of method and calculation, and our innate behaviours can be trained, sculpted and corrupted. This capacity for adaptation is what separates us from other animals – the ability to reconfigure habits in response to constantly shifting environments.
As a sports therapist, I know firsthand that encouraging good habits is essential for those seeking rehabilitation or aiming to improve their fitness. During clinic sessions, however, we typically only have around 45 minutes of contact time, and then the rest of the recovery process is in the hands of the client. A big part of my role is helping clients stay on track with their prescribed exercises and nutritional routines. So, the big question is:
How do we make good habits stick?
When habits help – and when they harm
A benefit of habits is that they can streamline our day by reducing decision fatigue and keep us in tune with the body’s natural rhythms. They guide much of our daily behaviour through automatic responses, making life simpler and more efficient.
But these instincts are not always a force for good. Take hunger, for example. An absolute necessity, yet our impulses rarely pause to assess the nutritional value of food. They crave what stimulates the senses – salt, sugar, and fats – rather than considering what the body truly needs. Left on autopilot, temptation will naturally steer the body towards choices that undermine its wellbeing, which is why it is so important to balance instinct with reason when making health-conscious decisions.
Thus, staying healthy depends on nurturing good habits while controlling unhelpful ones. Unlike instinctive behaviours, good habits often require structured conditioning and self-discipline. Take brushing our teeth, for example. It is instilled through repetition until it feels like an instinct. If we skip just one session, it leaves us feeling uneasy and anxious that something is missing.
The challenge of starting
The initial phase of integrating positive habits into our daily routine is often the most challenging. Progress can be slow, and the finish line appear like a distant speck on the horizon. As motivation starts to wobble, suddenly we start finding excuses, and subtle ways to endorse frequent bouts of procrastination.
Naturally, life pressures will impact our daily schedule. One phrase I hear most often at the clinic is: “Sorry! I have been busy with life, work, etc”. And I do sympathise. It is perfectly reasonable that work commitments should interfere with our best intentions. What I’ve come to notice is that we always seem to have plenty of time for the less productive habits in our lives, like scrolling on our devices or watching TV.
Tiredness can amplify the allure of temptation – this is also true. After a long day at work, we might find ourselves being seduced by the thought of a takeaway rather than thinking about what raw ingredients we have left in the cupboard. This is why seamlessly consolidating healthy practices into our daily routine is so important, because it helps us to instinctively carry out healthy choices without classifying them as an obstacle or chore.
The two-minute rule
To avoid being overly daunted or disheartened by the road ahead, it is always best to start off with achievable, realistic targets. Breaking down your goals into bite-sized pieces can make them almost as easy to follow as bad habits.
My recommendation for beginners is simple: to start with just two minutes of practising a positive habit, wherever possible.
Let’s say you want to read more. Make it manageable by starting with two minutes of reading before bed – or committing to the occasional chapter when time allows.
Likewise, if you are hoping to fit in more exercise, just briefly pick up some weights or commit to some quick burst of movement. Tie your resistance band to something you pass often – a door handle, a banister, or even a bedpost. Every time you walk past, take two minutes to do a quick set of shoulder or knee exercises. Running 10k or reading 100 pages may seem like a daunting prospect – whereas doing 10 press ups while the kettle is boiling is easy.
Interweaving new habits into existing ones – a practice known as habit stacking – is certainly a useful strategy for instigating meaningful change. By anchoring down habits into these veiled, barely noticeable two-minute portions, it removes the stress of always depending on willpower and needing to carve out extra time in our day to accomplish them. Progress slots naturally into the everyday, and the urge to procrastinate diminishes in potency.
Identity and comparison
Identity is one of the key drivers behind achieving proper fitness and recovery. To make tangible progress, we first must see ourselves as someone who is capable of being fit, active, and committed to caring for their body. When this mindset takes root, healthy behaviours stop feeling like chores, as they are no longer obligations imposed by outside forces, but are propelled by a desire arising from within.
But identity must also be grounded in context. It is important to avoid making unfair comparisons – especially with those from vastly different backgrounds. As a beginner, comparing yourself to a professional athlete, for example, would be entirely counterproductive and wind up having a negative impact.
I worked with a professional rugby team where training is not optional, it is their job. These players must follow a strict regime of exercise, attend daily sessions, and when injured, adhere to mapped out rehabilitation procedures. It still takes immense effort and self-discipline for them to reach that level of fitness, but they also have the support of an entire team paid to keep them in top physical condition.
This is perhaps quite an extreme example of who we might compare ourselves with, but it is a useful one. It reminds us that comparisons are rarely fair, and everybody operates according to their own unique set of advantages and disadvantages.
Comparison often fuels negative emotions and distorted self-perceptions. When we fall short of our targets, it can trigger shame, guilt, and self-loathing. Leaning into those feelings erodes momentum and harms our ambition to adopt good habits. It is an unpleasant cycle, and one that can only be broken through fair and proportionate self-assessment. We must remember that a healthy drive for perfection should always be supported by sound clarity and perspective.
Process over outcome
The same cautions apply when we focus too heavily on outcome orientation. By looking too far ahead we grow overly expectant – and what follows will likely be impatience, frustration, and the burden of feeling inadequate. Turning conscious actions into unconscious habits becomes nearly impossible if we are always chasing immediate results. We risk falling into a spiral of demotivation and despair if we are expecting to wake up ripped after only one day of weight training.
If we imagine injury rehab, then hoping to rush the process can be deeply discouraging because recovery is slow burning, and progress is not always linear or predictable. Rushing will only incur further setbacks, and the very same logic should be applied when trying to nurture good habits. Be patient – and be indifferent. Don’t even start to think about the results until they find you.
Making progress
Learning positive habits should be celebrated incrementally, where each miniature step is declared a triumphant stride towards success. Adhering to the behaviours you want takes time, discipline, and self-belief. Bad habits can be difficult to break – but stick with it and stay strong.
Staying healthy isn’t – and shouldn’t be – seen as a chore. Keep showing up for rehab sessions. Keep habit stacking. Keep carrying out your two-minute exercises using good form. Keep reading those chapters. Keep eating a balanced diet. Soon, healthy living will become a core part your DNA and flow naturally throughout your everyday. Start small – and by sowing the seeds for good habits to grow, the results will soon start to follow. The aim is not just to recover from injury or to look better. The aim is to feel better, and to entrench a way of living that will help keep you strong, mobile and pain free for many years to come.
For any further enquiries about habits, please feel free to contact any member of the Marsden Health team.
Written by Ari Marsden, Senior Sports Therapist
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