Habits and routines are both ingrained patterns of behavior that we adopt in our daily lives, yet they differ in their underlying nature and formation. Habits and Routines are the Keys to Your Fitness Success.

A habit is an automatic response to a specific cue or trigger, often developed through repetitive actions and reinforced over time. Once formed, habits become almost instinctual, requiring minimal conscious effort to execute. They are deeply ingrained and can be challenging to change, as they operate on a neurological level, residing in the basal ganglia of the brain.

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Examples of habits include biting nails when nervous or reaching for your phone first thing in the morning. Think about how many time you check your phone throughout the day.

On the other hand, routines encompass a set of intentional actions and behaviors deliberately organized in a particular order to achieve a specific purpose or outcome.

Routines are typically conscious and purposeful, designed to structure and manage daily tasks efficiently. Unlike habits, routines are flexible and can be modified or replaced with relative ease, as they are based on conscious decisions and preferences.

A classic example of a routine is a morning ritual, where you follow a sequence of activities such as stretching, meditating, and having breakfast to kickstart your day with productivity and focus.

Remember, habits are instinctual, routines are conscious decisions.

While habits tend to be more automatic and challenging to alter, routines are consciously constructed and adaptable, providing a sense of order and control in one's life.

Walking for Health and Fitness podcast episode 9, you will learn:

• The difference between habits and routines,

• Five steps to turning a routine into the habit of walking.

• Learn to apply what I call my “small steps” to big success to get you into the routine of preparing to get out the door and turn walking into a habit.

• Learn Three key variables drive human behavior.

 “The secret of success can be found in the daily routine” – Author Unknown

Habits & Routines

It’s important to understand the definition of each before we begin.

The definition of a habit is a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up. Keep in mind this hard to give up part as being associated with habits.

The definition of routine is a sequence of actions regularly followed; a fixed program.

Routines are easy to skip; like doing laundry.  

·      Habits feel uncomfortable when we don’t do them.

·      Habits are a behavior done with little or no thought.

If you smoke, it might be a habit to light up right after eating dinner or when you are stressed out. The smokers in my life describe this automatic process.

For me, drinking coffee first thing in the morning and also right after dinner is a habit.

Disregarding the physical addictions to nicotine or caffeine, the habit part comes in as the triggers of morning and after dinner relaxation come into play

Now, If you can procrastinate something, it’s a routine. Only certain types of behaviors can become routines

Before we develop a habit, we must begin by making them a routine.

 Let’s Discuss How to Start a Healthy Habit such as walking

I used the examples of smoking and caffeine as examples but since this podcast is about walking, let me discuss how you can make walking a habit.

5 Steps forming a habit requires sticking to a routine.

1. Make time in your schedule

2. Expect some discomfort

3. Learn to cope with the discomfort

4. Find ways to pre-commit to the task

5. Experience big success with what I call “small steps”

As long as we know the difference between a habit (a behavior done with little or no thought) and a routine (a series of actions regularly followed) we can plan accordingly and not be disappointed.

Make Walking a Healthy Habit

To make walking a habit, you need to begin with making the process of preparing to get out the door to walk a routine.

Uses this episode to develop your Get Out the Door Routine based on knowing the difference between habits and routines.

1. Schedule Time:

Since we can’t count on routines to happen automatically the way habits do, we need to make sure to allocate time for them.

Planning what you are going to do and when you are going to do it, has been shown to boost the likelihood of following through. 

Without a dedicated time reserved for your new routine, chances are it’ll never get done.

To develop the walking habit, first dedicate time to set out your clothes the night before. Set your shirts, pants, socks, sneakers, jacket, hip pack, water bottle, ear pods, hat, and anything else you would wear on your walks. This will take the guess work out of what to wear and eliminate the need to search high low for just the right pair of socks which can add frustration or “friction point” to you getting out on your walk. 

Being prepared the night before eliminates a friction point and them smoother to process the easier it will be to follow through to get out and walk.

Also, have a destination in mind of where you will walk. Over time you will create a number of go to walking routes to make this an easy process.

On my walking spreadsheet, I have a list of all the routes I walk and the mileage of each. So when I’m planning my walk, I just look at my list, I know the mileage and go. This reduces another potential friction point.

Whenever I’m looking for a new route, I use Google Earth and mappedometer.com to find routes and the mileage. I discuss using technology in ep. 8 of the Walking for Health and Fitness Podcast.

2. Expect Discomfort:

It’s important to expect that learning and repeatedly doing a new behavior requires effort. Expect discomfort and know that you’ll have to push through it. Developing new routines is not effortless. Setting out your walking gear each night might sound easy but, at first since it’s not part of your nightly routine, then you may forget to do it or remember as you just climbed into bed and got comfortable. Then you needed to get up and set out the clothes. Over time, as you continue to do this nightly task, you will settle into a nice routine and setting out your gear will become automatically added to your routine.

In my Walking for Health and Fitness Walking Program, I teach you how to tie routine development into wins and how we all need wins every day. Even a small win of setting out your gear leads to greater self-confidence. 

3. Learn coping skills

Perception is a matter of perspective, no matter the routine, you can choose to re-imagine your discomfort as a good thing. If walking is a new activity for you, you can learn to cope with the initial discomfort of exercising by imaging every step you take is building stronger muscles in your legs and core. Envision your toned stomach and ripped leg muscles. Visualization is a key component to sticking with a fitness routine.

4. Pre-commitment:

Before a behavior can become a habit, it needs to become a regularly performed routine (which is what we are working on here). But given how effortful routines can be, it’s far too easy to skip a difficult task. Remember for our definition, routines are easy to skip.

Thankfully, making a pre-commitment is a fantastic way to ensure you do what you say you will do.

For instance, if walking or exercising daily is a routine you want to adopt, finding someone to hold you accountable will increase your odds of success.

I covered 10 Ways to Hold Yourself Accountable in Episode 8 and having an accountability partner is one of those ways.

5. Experience big success with what I call “small steps.”

By not expecting every aspiration to become an effortless habit, you increase your odds of success.

If it’s the right kind of behavior, one that can be done with little or no conscious thought, the routine can become a habit.

It’s important to remember not to try and turn hard-to-do behaviors into habits. By doing so you risk frustration and failure.

Instead, accept that some behaviors will remain routines and expect them to never become effortless.

By focusing on forming solid routines through the steps outlined above, you’ll have a better chance of sticking to what’s important to you, while increasing the odds that some routines may blossom into habits.

Take “Small Steps” to Develop the Routines that will Lead to the Walking Habit.

To walk every day or at least several times per week takes developing mini habits or what I call “Small Steps” to make the process of getting out the door to walk nearly automatic.

Here are some easy prompts, or “small steps” to get you out the door and walking,

For the first two "Small Steps" or prompts, I'm not even asking you to walk!

1.    Dedicate a place in your home to lay out your walking clothes the night before (comfortable pants or shorts, top, jacket, shoes/sneakers, hip pack, water bottle, etc.)

2.    Put your walking clothes on each day. Again, you don't even have to walk, just put the clothes on

3.    If you decide to walk, then walk for at least 5 minutes. If you walk longer than 5 minutes, that's great; congratulations. If you're not "feeling it," then turn around and go back home. Athletes, even professional athletes say the toughest part of their workout is just getting out the door.

But, here’s the thing, you’ll find that Newton’s First Law of Motion applies:

“A body at rest tends to remain at rest. A body in motion tends to stay in motion. Bodies will continue in their current state, whether at rest or in motion, unless acted on by a greater outside force. - Sir Isaac Newton

Here's the reward: You get a win for each action you take towards your goal of walking for your health and fitness.

• You win by preparing to walk (putting your clothes out).

• You win by putting your clothes on.

• You win by getting out the door and walking for 5 minutes.

• You win if you decide to walk longer; that's another win for you today!

Each "Small Step" toward your long-term goal is celebrated as a win! Just think about all the winning you will do on your way to walking to health and fitness in the coming days.

Three key variables drive human behavior:

• Motivation is your desire to do something.

• Ability is your capacity to do that thing.

• Prompts are the stimuli that trigger you to do it.

Motivation alone occasionally inspires people to do extraordinary things – like mothers lifting cars to save their children. But generally, people's motivation levels are low, so they'll only take actions that are comfortably within their abilities.

Motivation may work for one-off feats, but more is needed for sustained change. And even that only happens when there's a clear prompt.

Wanting to be fit enough to walk 5-miles at a time is an aspiration.

Aspirations are abstract outcomes; they tell you about the results you're trying to achieve, not how you will achieve them.

But, motivation alone won't do the trick.

Behavior bridges this gap between the present moment and the desired future outcome.

To to build up to walking 5-miles at a time takes time.

You need to consistently  “get out the door” and walk several times per week.

Bridging the gap between the aspiration of wanting to walk 5-miles and getting out the door to do it takes effort, planning, motivation, and a stick-to-it mentality.

Developing mini habits or what I call “Small Steps” or prompts, compel you to take action to make the process of getting out the door to walk nearly automatic.

The Added Benefits of taking "Small Steps”:

• You’ll Boost Self-Esteem: You can see how these "Small Step" wins boost your self-esteem by doing things you were never brave enough to do before.

• You’ll Experience Success Every Day: "Small Steps" toward your goal give you the unique opportunity to experience success. Remember, 5 miles is daunting; putting your clothes out each night is an easy win for you! Just having your clothes ready each evening for your morning walk is a success without even having to walk.

• Small Steps Gives You Control: These "Small Steps" also make you feel like you're in control. Humans hate being out of control or, worse, being controlled by others.

A major component of my Walking for Health and Fitness Complete Walking program is a developing “Small Steps” to reach any goal you set. Learn more about this awesome program.

Remember, the huge "I want to walk 5 miles" goal can take time and energy; if accomplishing that goal is two months away, you may begin to resent it.

Then, if you ever reach your 5-mile goal, you will have experienced success only on that day and only that one time.

By having small, daily wins, the two months will fly by. You'll achieve many small wins each day and feel great every time you have that small success.

Ultimately, you will reach your 5-mile goal or any goal you set to accomplish with this method quicker.

Comment below and tell me your best habit building technique to get you out the door.

Walk on,
Frank S. Ring
Author: Walking for Health and Fitness, Fitness Walking and Bodyweight Exercises, Walking Inspiration, and Walking Logbook Journal.