recognizing habits...

 Habit- an acquired pattern of behavior that often occurs automatically

Hi. My name is Lindsey and I am creature of habit. I hit my snooze 3x, I take a shower, pick out clothes to wear to work, take my vitamins, then brush my teeth, let the dogs out, then drive to work, I start my computer, then make a cup of coffee...you get the point. These habits are not causing me harm. However, I can think of quite a few that I am doing while in auto-pilot mode that are actually detrimental to my health, weight, attitude, etc.

For example: back when siddathornton and I worked together, one of our favorite things to do was walk to the cafeteria and get a salad; then we'd come back to our office and watch a tv show, look at blogs and whatnot. In our minds, we had justified this eating habit as a healthy choice. Although, this wasn't your "garden variety" salad, mind you. It had buffalo chicken, cheese, southwest dressing, and croutons on it for goodness sakes. We were getting these suckers daily. It wasn't until we noticed our bodies changing that we really thought about it. We began weening ourselves off of it, but as habits go- we still crave them. What was once a daily occurrence eventually - thoughtfully- became a special occasional treat. As I am now preparing myself (and my body) for a wedding, I am taking a more concerted look at my daily choices - could little positive changes make a big impact? I think so and I will begin by reading this.

Charles Duhigg's new book The Power of Habit

{video seen on A Cup of Jo}