Make a “habit” out of your E D
Soo, maybe you’ve had an eating disorder for awhile now. Your weight goes up and down. You try different diets, different exercise routines. But you never stick to it long enough to hit your UGW. Hear are some tips that’ll change that. (Based on the book Atomic Habits)
Get 1% better every day. You make a lot more progress in the end changing your habits bit by bit than you do going all in then giving up and trying again
Stay patient. It takes time to see results. Keep doing what you’re doing regardless.
Stop over focusing on goals, start building systems of habits that allow you to reach those goals.
Change your identity, change your process, then change your outcome. Become the type of person that does things to make them lose weight, build a system of habits of doing those things, and you’ll lose the weight! Focus on WHO you wish to become, not just goals weights. Make it your identity. Build a process off that identity. Then your outcomes will follow in line.
Every action is a vote for who you wish to become! Know that, and keep that in mind when completing any action. Put more votes in for becoming a skinny person than a fat person! Every sip of water, every bite, every step, every minute you workout, every pound lost, it all counts for who you want to be.
Building habits comes out of the frequency you do things. Every time you avoid a binge, every time you stay within your cal limit, every time you workout, anything. Every time you do it, it becomes more of a habit. Do it frequently.
To build a habit you must make it obvious, attractive, easy, and satisfying. To break a habit you must make it invisible, unattractive, difficult, and unsatisfying. Keep this in mind for when trying to build a habit out of restricting or working out, or breaking the habit of binging.
Keep in mind the Goldilocks rule. People experience peek motivation when working on tasks that are right on the edge of their current abilities. Remember that 1% better? Keep your cal limits and workout routines just a bit harder than what you can handle, get used to it, then go harder.
The biggest threat to success isn’t failure, it’s boredom. That’s why it’s important to keep motivation up. But keep in mind anyone can work when they’re motivated, what matters is working hard when it’s no longer exciting. Fat people give up, skinny people stick to it no matter what life throws them. Keep motivation high, and when it’s low- keep going!
How to build the habit of restricting + working out
Write down your current eating and exercise habits, become aware of your current habits.
Use implementation intentions. Say “I will (blank) at (time) in (location). Ex: I will workout at 6:00am everyday at my local gym.
Habit stacking. Say “After I (current habit you’re already used to) I will (new habit). Ex: After I use the bathroom in the morning, I will weigh myself and immediately log it.
Design your environment. Make the cues of good habits obvious and visible. Ex: Keeping workout equipment nearby, having the fridge full of healthy low cal food, having a Fitbit on, having a calorie tracker app.
Temptation bundling, pair an action you want to do with something you need to do. Ex: workout while watching your favourite tv show.
Join a culture where your desired behaviour is the norm! Ex: Tumblr, edtwt, ed Instagram, Ana chats, etc
Create a motivation ritual. Do something you enjoy immediately before a difficult habit. Ex: I listen to my favourite playlist as I get all cute and dressed up to motivate myself before I go to the gym!
Reduce friction, limit the number of steps between you and your habits. Ex: meal prep healthy food with the calories already preset in your calorie app, have a workout bag prepped, keep workout stuff at home if a gym is too far, etc
Prime your environment to make future actions easier. Ex: Keep things that would help you nearby! Protein bars, prepped meals, gum, a water bottle, prepped workout bag, workout stuff at home, vitamins and diet pills in a dated pill case, etc.
Master the decisive moment. Optimize small choices that deliver outsized impact. Ex: choosing healthier foods when shopping or eating, saying yes to working out.
Two minute rule. Downsize your habits until they can be done in two minutes or less, then work up! Ex: start with getting ready for the gym, then work to going for a few minutes, then work to a routine!
Automate your habits. Invest in technology and purchases that lock in future behaviour! Ex: workout/calorie counting/fasting apps, Fitbit, reminders on your phone, etc.
Give yourself an immediate reward for every good action to increase reinforcement. Ex: Every time I workout or avoid a binge, I give myself time in my day to do something I want to do like watch tv or read. Sometimes I’ll buy myself something like a Diet Coke, makeup, or jewelry.
Make doing nothing enjoyable. When avoiding a bad habit, design a way to see and understand the benefits. Ex: Keep a weight loss journal and look at the dates you lost weight and see how it was because you didn’t binge!
Use a habit tracker. Keep track of your streak. Ex: Weight loss journal, calorie counter/weight loss app, checking off dates in a calendar when you follow your plan, marbles in a jar, etc.
Never miss twice. If you binge, or don’t workout, or anything that harms your weight loss, get back on track immediately
How to break the habit of binging
Reduce exposure. Remove the cues of your bad habit from the environment. Ex: don’t buy foods you’re likely to binge, keep distractions hidden to encourage working out, avoid restaurants you know will have no options for you, avoid outings that revolve around food, etc.
Reframe your mindset, understand the benefits of avoiding your bad habits. Ex: look at th1nsp0, f@tsp0, weigh yourself, take body checks, etc.
Increase friction, increase the number of steps between you and bad habits. Ex: Buy food in small quantities at a time, make sure you can’t access your money to go out and eat or order food, make it hard to access any distractions from working out.
Use a commitment device, restrict your future choices to ones that benefit you. Ex: put parental controls on food delivery apps, buy clothes that would only fit you if you were skinnier, etc
Get an accountability partner. Ex: Find a friend on an Ana platform and keep each other in check!
Create a habit contract, make the cost of your bad habits public and painful. Ex: make a contract with yourself and maybe even include your accountability partner, make a list of conditions (like cals allowed, minimum workout time, steps, water, or any other rules), a list of rewards for losing weight, and a list of punishments if you fail to follow the conditions. Make the punishment public and painful! Like wearing a skin tight outfit to an outing when you’re bloated from a binge.
And that’s all folks! I hope this helps!