Don't eat kale unless you like it!

Beautiful, colourful kale ,,, but do you really want it in a smoothie?

Feeling the need for change?

It’s January, a time when people often feel the need for change, and that’s why Woman’s Hour on 30 December 2019 looked at how to create habits that will last. Behaviour change specialist Dr Heather McKee was called on for advice and if you read the article on the BBC website ‘Willpower is not the key’ you will see how it aligns with Alexander Technique principles; that’s why I’m using the BBC headings in this article.

Understand the difference between a resolution and a habit

Resolutions may be rather grand. You might resolve never to cross your legs again when you sit down, but you’d probably forget this resolution on many occasions. If instead you decided to notice the ground under your feet as you sit down, you’d be establishing a new and useful habit. Habits are powerful, and, don’t forget, there are good habits as well as bad ones. We put on our seat-belts, brush our teeth before bed, and put litter in the bin without a second thought.

Start with your ‘why’?

Dr McKee explains that intrinsic goals (things that matter to you personally) are more motivating than extrinsic ones (the outcome). This is exactly why in AT we urge pupils to consider ‘the means whereby’ rather than ‘end-gaining’. If your goal is to run a marathon, it will be helpful to pay attention to all the benefits of the training process, rather than merely focussing on the day of the marathon itself.

Willpower is not the key to success

You also need to accept that willpower works best when things are going well for you. It’s when you have a bad day that you reach for the chocolate/wine/cigarettes. Hence the need for nourishing practices, such as Active Rest, and for learning how to observe oneself without judgment.

Start small

Starting small and being successful enhances one’s feelings of satisfaction, making it easier to continue with the process of change. If you ask yourself to stop every time you notice yourself gripping the car steering wheel, then you’re embarking on a behavioural pattern that’ll affect other areas of your life too.

Make it relevant to your life

AT is all about how you relate to the environment around you, and how you can peel off layers of acquired behaviour to discover your true self within. Dr McKee talks about kale … As she says, kale salad may well be healthy, but if you don’t like it, don’t force yourself to eat it! Standing desks are widely recommended at present, but if you can’t work at one, then improve conditions at your seated desk instead, and move around regularly.

It’s a marathon not a sprint

Once again Dr McKee talks about the journey rather than the destination. AT plays a part in everything you do. At first you have to think about it a lot, but gradually it becomes second nature. And one of the great things is that you are learning to look after yourself without being reliant upon a therapist for evermore.

Banish the shame

Be kind to yourself. You may not like the way you look or move, but all sorts of factors will have played their part in how you’ve turned out, some of them outside your control. If we accept how we are, it doesn’t mean we can’t change. In fact, it makes it easier to take the small steps that lead to positive and lasting change.