The Power of Developing Positive Habits

Habits are the building blocks of our daily lives, and we all have them. Some are neutral, like tying our left or right shoe first. Others can be harmful, such as smoking or impulsive snacking. But daily positive habits, like exercise, help us become the version of ourselves we want to be.

Once you’ve established a new positive habit, it becomes much easier to maintain, and the results can be life-changing. This guide will explain how to form positive habits and how they can benefit your mental health.

The Science of Creating Positive Habits

A habit is a learned behavior that becomes almost automatic or unconscious through repetition. The process of repeated behaviors becoming habits is called habituation, or the “habit loop.” It involves physical changes to neural pathways that make your brain more efficient at repeating a behavior pattern by training it to skip the conscious decision-making stage. This neurological process explains why it takes deliberate effort to form new habits but feels automatic to sustain them after a while. Habituation has three components:

• Cue: A cue is a trigger that initiates your routine. For example, putting on your training shoes could cue you to head out the door and drive to the gym.
• Routine: A routine is the repeated behavior itself, like going to the gym.
• Reward: A reward is an experience of positive reinforcement that encourages you to repeat the routine. This could be internal, like feeling energized, or external, such as treating yourself to your favorite smoothie on the way home.

When you combine these three components and repeat them consistently, you’ve got a recipe for a lasting habit.

How Positive Workout Habits Improve Your Mental Health

Positive habits can improve every area of your life, including your mental health. And of all the examples of positive mental health habits you could form, a healthy exercise routine is one of the most beneficial. Here are the top eight advantages:

Improved Mood

Exercise gives your brain the ultimate feel-good cocktail. It triggers the release of dopamine, which is associated with pleasure and motivation, mood-regulating serotonin, and stress-relieving endorphins, helping to flood your mind with positive emotions and bring relief from negative feelings.

Reduced Stress

Regular workouts are among the healthiest coping mechanisms for stress. When life’s obstacles feel overwhelming, exercise provides a welcome mental break and redirects your focus to positive, mindful movements. On a neurological level, exercise lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol while stimulating endorphins.

Alleviated Anxiety

A workout habit can help you conquer anxiety by stimulating the release of GABA, the neurotransmitter that promotes relaxation and reduces anxiety symptoms. You may also find it easier to overcome feelings of helplessness through boosted confidence.

Enhanced Emotional Resilience

Working out builds more than muscles — it grows the resilience you need to bounce back from life’s lows. The combination of feel-good hormones, healthy coping skills, enhanced self-efficacy and access to community all strengthen your ability to handle what comes your way.

Increased Self-Esteem

Exercise can help improve your body image and sense of physical competence, which is great for your self-esteem. But these benefits don’t just come from the results of working out — they come from the process of caring for and accepting yourself along the way.

Enriched Relationships

A gym can be a good place to make friends and experience social acceptance within a supportive community. Consider joining a group fitness class to connect with a positive peer group that shares a commitment to health.

Sharpened Focus

Exercise improves blood flow to the brain and elevates dopamine and norepinephrine, which help support alertness and learning. If you want to feel more organized and attentive, fight cognitive decline, and potentially even reduce your risk of dementia, start building your workout habits today.

Better Sleep

Working out can help you fall asleep and often promotes deeper, more restorative sleep. Better sleep, in turn, can help reduce the symptoms of depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions.

7 Tips for Forming Positive Workout Habits

Getting your mental health in shape through positive workout habits is easier than many people think. Here are eight tips to take you from inconsistent or nonexistent exercise to a fitness routine that becomes second nature:

• Make it fun: Building your routine around activities you enjoy will make each workout feel like a treat. Explore a range of training styles, from weights and cardio to yoga, Zumba or baseball to discover what feels best for you.
• Keep workouts short and sweet: There’s no need to rush into marathon training sessions. If you’re just starting, challenge yourself to exercise 10 minutes a day every day for three weeks. Long-term, 30-60 minutes a day, three to five days per week, is a sustainable target and aligns with the recommended minimum of 150 minutes of weekly moderate-intensity physical activity.
• Remove obstacles: Make your workout habit as easy as possible by choosing a gym near your home and packing your bag the night before.
• Plan your cues: Create reminders to trigger your workout habit. One effective approach is to embed your workout into a consistent slot within your daily routine. For many, this means stopping at the gym on your way home from work, but you can train at any time of day that suits you.
• Pair exercise with nutrition habits: If you already eat meals at similar times each day, heading to the gym before or after a certain meal can be a helpful cue. Consider a weekly meal-prep routine to save time on cooking and have plenty of nutritious food available. If you eat a balanced diet of mostly whole foods in the right amounts for your needs, you’ll be better fueled for training.
• Reward yourself: Reinforce your workout habit by enjoying a reward after each session, whether that means a delicious smoothie, a warm bath or a few minutes of positive reflection about your body and what you can do with it.
• Find a community: Joining a gym that promotes community and acceptance can make your sessions more enjoyable and help you stick to your new habit.

Strengthen Your Mind and Body With 5 Bridges Health & Fitness

Forming positive workout habits can help you flourish in every area of your life, including your mental health. If you want to make working out as easy as possible, you need fun activities, a safe environment and a welcoming community. You’ll find all that and more at 5 Bridges Health & Fitness in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

At 5 Bridges Health & Fitness, people of all ages and fitness levels, including those who have never entered a gym, are welcome. Whatever your starting point, our certified personal trainers, small group classes and broad range of activities and equipment will help you build the habits that cultivate a healthier mind and body.

Learn more about 5 Bridges Health & Fitness and how we can help you build positive workout habits now.