We've all done it: on Monday you resolve to eat healthier foods. On Tuesday you think it'd be a good idea to exercise more. On Friday you slump in front of the telly with a hamburger and a fizzy drink.
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We know that changing habits is really difficult. While most habits are good, a few are decidedly not.
While there's no shortage of help about how to improve lifestyles, ingrained negative behaviours seem almost intractable. We know, and yet we continue them anyway.
A useful way to think about this is the struggle between the conscious and subconscious mind.
Making decisions is an expensive affair that takes time and energy, and habits are a handy shortcut.
It works on the fair assumption that what you did before will probably also be good next time.
A habit allows the unconscious to do its job without intruding on the conscious because a good worker only bothers the boss when necessary.
On the whole, it's an efficient way to use limited brain resources, but the downside is the dysfunctional habits.
Now MRI studies have been able to show which parts of the brain are involved, such as the prefrontal cortex for purposeful behaviour and the putamen, which controls unconscious learning.
Recent trials are showing what happens as participants form habits.
Learning a new habit requires conscious effort and, after enough repetitions, it becomes more automatic.
However, that isn't enough to instil a habit. To be effective, a habit should be associated with a trigger. You might, for example, build something into your routine. Exercise or walk the dog after breakfast.
Or if you recognise that coffee is a cue to smoke a cigarette, it might help to trigger a less harmful alternative.
Researchers have found other effective strategies such as devising a personal plan and keeping a diary.
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Or it could be that a bad habit is linked to a particular circumstance. If so, perhaps it's possible to reconfigure that into something more positive.
How long all this takes depends on what you're trying to achieve. One study showed that changing handwashing habits might take only a few weeks, while acquiring a gym habit took 2-3 months.
On average, changing a habit took 66 days.
As 2026 bears down on us, you might want to make a new year's resolution, but don't fuss. An Australian survey found that "no resolution" was the fourth most popular choice.
Be realistic, and best wishes from Fuzzy Logic.
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is at 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to AskFuzzy@Zoho.com; Podcast: FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
