Breaking a Habit | The Alexander Technique

Breaking A Habit?
It Doesn't Have To Be So Difficult

Breaking a habit can be very, very difficult. How many New Years’ resolutions have you made with such conviction are broken before the end of January? The problem is you are trying to change an aspect of your behavior without changing yourself. How did the habit form in the first place? Who you are, allowed it to develop and this behavior continued until it becomes a conditioned reflex, otherwise know as a habit.

Habits are strong connections within your brain that are easily triggered by something you sense. For example, I once worked with a woman who had an urge for chocolate every time she saw the color purple! She had associated this color with the taste and smell of chocolate and to see it was enough to trigger the strong connections in her brain to seek it out. To break this habit she was going to have to stop herself reacting immediately on the stimulus of purple.

Whatever aspect of behavior you wish to change it will be triggered by an event or something about you that starts the chain reaction. Once this has started it takes a tremendous amount of willpower to stop.

Before you can start breaking a habit you first have to recognise what starts the chain reaction and how you can stop it before it’s too late.

The Alexander Technique is usually thought of a system to improve posture, in fact, it is a very practical method of giving yourself time to think. This allows you to reason through your actions before the habit kicks in. In short, you can respond (think) before you react (automatic, habitual action).

Habits And Feeling

Here is a short test.

1. Fold your arms and note the position of your hands and which arm is on the outside.

2. Now unfold them and fold them again but this time the opposite way. Note your reaction to how this feels.

Was it harder doing it the opposite way? Did you have to think before you could do it? The first way is your habit or those strong connections in your brain. The stimulus was the instruction and it was easy to carry out because you have a tried and tested habit. The second way is much harder because you don’t have a habit pattern (the connections in your brain). The second way probably feels odd because it’s a new sensation that you don’t associate with the feeling you normally get when you fold your arms.

To appreciate why it is difficult breaking a habit, the next time you want to fold your arms see if you can stop and fold them the other way. You will invariably find you have folded you arms before you remember to try the other way. This is because a stimulus will have triggered your habitual arm fold unconsciously. The stimulus could be anything that has caused you to do it previously. Perhaps you are bored or do this whilst thinking.

When it comes to breaking a habit many will try to avoid the situations that activate the habitual behavior, such as not going to bars so they won’t want to smoke or getting up immediately after dinner to stop themselves eating a sweet.

It doesn’t matter what the stimulus is because it will be difficult to avoid all things that prompt your habit. The important factor in breaking a habit is to firstly recognise what starts the habitual chain reaction and how to change your response.

This is extremely difficult if you are on autopilot and subconsciously going about your business. How many times a day do you find yourself thinking about things that are completely unrelated to what you are currently doing?

We daydream, switch off and go into autopilot allowing subconscious reactions to events around us without even being aware of the process.

So What’s The Solution?

The opposite to being on autopilot is to be switched on, in the moment or a term athletes use is in The Zone. That’s where you need to be when breaking a habit so you can be in complete control and respond reasonably instead of automatically (habitually). Here The Alexander Technique scores over every other method. It works at a level where you can get into the moment and be fully aware of what you are doing and how you are reacting. It is not just a system for improving posture and getting rid of those common aches and pains (although this is also very useful).

Learning The Alexander Technique is the best way to breaking a habit as it can take you into what I call the window of opportunity between the stimulus and your reaction. This gives you the power to choose your response and prevent an automatic habitual reaction. This empowers you to take control of your life and change how you normally react. So you can change yourself and the process that normally determines how you behave. This is ultimately better than trying to change your behavior without addressing the mechanisms that have allowed the habit to develop in the first place.

Breaking a habit the athletes way
Athletes are constantly breaking a habit. Habits of movement and performance are no different to habits such as smoking or eating too much. My unique Zone Fitness Program is relevant to anyone wanting to get into the moment and learn self control.

What is The Alexander Technique?
This world-renowned system is much misunderstood. It's not about posture and muscles. It's an indespensable tool for anyone interested in personal development (and breaking a habit!)

What is so special about The Zone?
Athletes and artists talk about The Zone as a mystical place where performance is effortless and enjoyable. Why do we spend so little time here? Can we train to get there more often?

Take a look at my free downloads
We have a number of programs you can download for developing skills that will help you change your habits.

Breaking A Habit?It Doesn't Have To Be So Difficult

Habits And Feeling

So What’s The Solution?

Further Reading

Breaking A Habit?
It Doesn't Have To Be So Difficult