Brainwashing yourself into the habit of exercise

The trick to programming a habit is to reinforce (reward) good activity, not reward or punish bad activity (eating junk food). Eventually, the mind begins to associate consequences with actions. In this case, you do the exercise, you get a reward.

Pretty simple, right? But here’s what happens: People will decide they’re going to take the reward before they exercise. So, after several beers or hours of television, they have lost whatever incentive they had to begin with. Not many dogs will do a trick after receiving a treat. Not many people will work after they get paid.

Behavior Conditioning Rule #1: The reward comes AFTER the activity.

So in the case of doing, say, 20 sit-ups or using the lawn mower to mow your back lawn, you’ll be rewarded after the sit-ups. For example, after 20 sit-ups, I would recommend a glass of water or reading the newspaper. (Mowing the back lawn with a push mower makes for at least a couple glasses of lemonade.) In my experience, the reward should be below total satisfaction.

The reward should not be too overwhelming. Not an hour of TV, a case of beer, or half a cheesecake. This will set your mind up for failure. Like a pampered pet, child, teenager, or worker, your mind will tend to wait for the big reward before taking even the slightest initiative.

Now hearing this sometimes offends people because they don’t think it’s very fair. He reminds me of the dieter who gorges himself on junk on Wednesdays because he “was very disciplined” and visited the gym on Mondays and Tuesdays. That’s the wrong reward and the wrong amount.

Even giving great rewards for great efforts has its drawbacks. For example, the lady insists on losing 20-30 pounds and then rewards herself with a trip to Mexico or a Liz Clairborne outfit. Every day is like a job without pay. The end seems miles away. In the mind of the weight loser, diet and exercise seem like bitter medicine every day. And every day is a little torture session.

Fortunately, there are easier ways to avoid this goal. To begin with, you need to go back to the small rewards strategy. In this case of weight loss, this dieter could give himself a mark on the calendar for each day that he was faithful to the diet. Better yet, make a checkmark for each meal true to your diet. There is a higher chance of success with several small rewards than with a few large ones.

Checkmarks become the simple reward. Eventually, a certain number of check marks, like say 100, could mean a vacation trip or that fancy outfit. To simplify it further, every 10 check marks could mean a movie or a visit to a store. 25 check marks could mean a visit to a good restaurant. The rewards could even be something you usually do, like wandering through bookstores. That way, there’s a little more pressure on you to perform.

Here’s one: Don’t answer or talk to friends on the phone until you’ve finished 20 minutes of your workout (or homework or homework).

So now you have the positive reinforcement for a good habit. Maybe even a little pressure by withdrawing the reward if you don’t comply. At the risk of repeating myself, rewards must be small and frequent to influence the mind to form a routine.

I have used this reward system to improve my study habits. I wasn’t allowed to watch The Simpsons TV show until I had completed a chapter of homework. While riding the bus to and from college, I would study 4 pages of notes and then reward myself with reading fiction. Using this method, I increased my Biology grade from a D to a B in a few months.

Immediate rewards are stronger than delayed rewards. That’s why it’s important to reward yourself immediately after a short, regular effort. For example, rewarding yourself with a phone call, juice or meeting with friends after a workout makes a stronger impression on the mind than buying a new outfit after 3 months of training.

To further strengthen your behavior, keep a log of your activities. Writing something down each day serves to remind you of your homework and your progress.

Date/Time – Desired Behavior – Reward

2 Jan 05 – 30 lunges – Phone a friend

Jan 3, 2005 – 40 minute run/bike – Juice/Beer/Gatorade

Jan 4, 2005 – nothing, work late, poop – N/A

What we are trying to do here is to get the mind to associate the

task as unpleasant as it is pleasant. If running means television

and no running means no tv so there is mind influence to get

the body running. And run fast, because your favorite TV show starts in an hour.

For more methods, read the download: Stomach Flattening