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Useful Self-Improvement Interventions (2013)
- gleenn 5y agoThe practicing a habit example is great, it has been nearly impossible to quit cracking my knuckles because, like the author, I would only notice when it was too late. Practicing by fake-starting to do the bad habit and then doing a replacement seems like a great way to get around that
- powersnail 5y agoIt reminds me of what a friend called the "Pavlovian alarm clock training". Set an alarm clock for five minutes, jumps onto the bed pretending to sleep, and when the alarm goes off, immediately get up and walk around. Do this several times every day and for a few days, and you'll have an easier time getting up to the alarm in the morning. And it worked for me. It's fortunate that I don't have to resort to this anymore (plenty of sleeping time, now). But it was pretty useful when I during middle school, especially at the end of long vacations.
- hatmatrix 5y agoThese are typical recommendations for fighting obsessive-compulsive behaviors. It's been a long time but I recall reading something like this in The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force (2003) by J.M. Schwartz - seems like he has some more recent books out that specifically prescribe remedies (I assume are along these lines).
- maneesh 5y agobiased i am, but you can use pavlok to #1 automate awareness with a vibration, based on hand motion, and #2 snap out and reduce automatic habits with the electric shock. Usually takes about 3-5 days for our knuckle cracking users (and smokers) to quit for good
- bsaul 5y agoI stopped biting my nails entirely the day my front teeth started to break because of it. Believe me, once that starts to happen, you never ever do it again.
- The_rationalist 5y ago
- ravishi 5y agoBelieve me, that has been happening to me and I have not stopped biting my nails.
- raegis 5y agoSame here. I just bite with my canines now. They seem to be indestructible so far.
- maroonblazer 5y agoI can recommend this product whole-heartedly. Mavala Stop Deterrent Nail Polish Treatment. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000YUXI0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000YUXI0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b...
- ravishi 5y agoThank you. My parents used to try something similar when I was 7. After a while I got used to it's taste and would bite anyway. I wonder how I would deal with it as an adult, tho.
- nick__m 5y agoIMO, push-ups are a quicker way to build muscles and self-esteem than weightlifting. That exercise is one of the most complete[1] and you can avoid damaging your carpal tunnel with a cheap pair of handles. It takes 6 week to go from being barely able to do 5 consecutives push-ups to being able to do a series of 100.[2] But if you had abdominal surgery check with your doctor before embarking/restarting that journey, I learn this the painfull way ... Finally, the number of push-ups a middle-aged men is able to do is inversely correlated with the risk of cardiovascular disease. According to that research[3], it's at least as good as the treadmill test. 1- https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/health-benefits-push-ups https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/health-benefits-push-... 2- https://hundredpushups.com/week1.html https://hundredpushups.com/week1.html 3- https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/push-ups-as-a-quick-and-dirty-predictor-of-heart-health/ https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/push-ups-...
- dan-robertson 5y agoI worry your third paragraph is mostly correlation: conditioned on someone being able to do a lot of push ups they are likely to be healthy and active rather than just someone who trains push ups.
- nick__m 5y agoI am pretty sure that the firefighters in that 10y long study are already likely to be healthy and active. But your argument is sounds and it's only one health study, so I should have said correlated. But in my defense I used the same terminology as the article I linked to. edit: I did not used the terminology from the articles but I said correlated instead of predictor... I should have re-read my post before replying... anyway I agree with you ;)
- agumonkey 5y agoWeight lift involves muscles differently. I liked pushups better before but lifting helps a lot everywhere else.
- agentwiggles 5y ago
- dan-robertson 5y agoThis post is nearly 10 years old. I wonder how well these techniques have worked out for the author in the time since. Certainly I’ve seen plenty of interesting posts on their blog and some refer to some kind of habit forming behaviours.
- thenerdhead 5y agoHere’s one more: If you don’t know what you want in life, there’s two reasons: 1. You already have it or don’t know you already have it. 2. You don’t know yourself as well as you think you do. Whenever in doubt, you’ll find more clarity through working to be a better person and getting to know yourself more in the process. You do that by improving yourself in someway everyday.
- sudhirkhanger 5y agoFor many years I have tried to lift weight and be healthy but I have always failed at establishing it as a core habit/hobby. But I really want to. What can I do to build the habit of weight lifting? If I go to gym 6 days a week what is the least amount of workout that I can do to build the habit.
- alecst 5y agoI think it depends on your goals, but finding a hobby that you like that works you out as a side effect is probably better for you than straight weight lifting. Like, say, rock climbing. Then eventually you can start doing other exercises (like presses, in this example) not for their own sake but to support your climbing hobby (with antagonistic training.) There are a million examples. Don’t worry about being the most fit, start with something you enjoy that works you out a little bit and that you look forward to doing, and go from there. My humble advice.
- hprotagonist 5y ago3x/week is fine and also much easier to attain than 6x. Rest days are important for muscle growth! if you have the funds, spend them on a trainer who will both cause you to have an appointment to meet and also teach you what’s good and safe for you. Go monday wednesday friday, take the weekends off. Do it for 3 months and you’ll never stop, or you’ll be able to reestablish the habit again if you do.
- orev 5y agoThe habit to focus on the most would be simply going to the gym. Even if you don’t do much, that’s probably the biggest thing you’d need to get into a routine.