21 Day Myth of Forming a Habit

Recently, a client said to me after 21 days my workouts will become habit. Haven’t we all heard or possibly believe something to that effect.  That anything you do for 21 days automatically becomes a habit. That conversation stayed with me and caused me to do some research as I too wanted to understand what it took to make permanent changes. Why do some people attain permanent results while many either try and fail, or manage some level of success and then you see them six to twelve months later and they are back to what they looked like before or worse. I became determined to provide my clients with the best chances for lasting success.   Knowing what I have had to do to managed my own road to success and challenges in life, I thought to myself, how long has it taken me to achieve my set goals and accomplishments, could a simple 21 days really be the right answer.  I felt some goals took longer than 21 days and some a lot less. As the owner of SFX, Trainer and overall fitness enthusiast, I felt compelled to search out the validity of the “21 Day Habit Myth”, not just for this challenge but for a clearer understanding and clarification of origin of the 21-day myth.

Where the Myth of “21 days” Originated

The 21 Day Habit Myth can be traced back to a book published in 1960, “Psycho-Cybernetics “ by Dr. Maxwell Maltz. Although Maltz didn’t make the 21 day claim, he referenced this number as an observable metric in both himself and his patients. He wrote: “These and many other commonly observed phenomena tend to show that it requires a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to dissolve and a new one to gel.” But as the book gained traction and became more popular, with more than 30 million copies sold, this situational observation seemed to translate as accepted fact. This left me wondering – is it truly fact or an urban legend.

So as I dug a bit further, I found that this same study concluded that, on average, it truly takes 60 days for a new behavior to become automatic. That certain habits require more time than others, as demonstrated in the study, many participants found the adoption of drinking a glass of water at breakfast, easier than 50 sit-ups after morning coffee. Some people are just better suited to forming habits than others.  A consistent routine of any kind isn’t for everyone, so finding a good solution often needs some level of tailoring – this is where SFX can help you make a life changing difference in your routine. We believe by offering a more holistic approach to your health you will see this truly as a life change versus a decision to lose weight that is often re-found. By choosing to release old habits and committing to a clearer process of eating habits, exercise routines and putting yourself first your 2021 will finally give you the permanent results you are looking for.

It can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days for a person to form a new habit. This 60 day challenge will guide you the process you need to attain a new fitness/lifestyle behavior that can and will become automatic. So, my challenge to you is to join me on this 60 day challenge and finally, truly “release” the extra pounds you have collected over Covid.

 It’s not about losing the weight – because when you lose something you tend to find it again.  So let’s work together to release the bad habit(s) and permanently release the weight. At SFX, we know that there’s no one-size-fits all solution, which is why this challenge can be modified to fit your needs; as some habits are easier to form than others and some people may find it easier (or harder) to develop new behaviors.

There’s no right “one size fits all” answer but based on my own success and key client successful outcomes, let SFX's personal trainers guide you into attaining the success that you deserve – the online right timeline that matters is the one that works best for you.

 Everyone is different and reaches their own plateau or goals in their own time! It’s pretty much all relative and depends on things such as: work ethic, determination, time availability, mind set and even genetics!! So join the SFX 60 day challenge and finally free yourself from the quarantine fifteen and find your fabulous fitness forever.