If you’re stuck in a rut, participate in this workshop to discuss small healthy strategies that can add up to big changes. We’ll discuss behavior, motivation, and “triggers” that can help you build healthy habits into your daily routine.

1. Tiny Steps,
BIG Changes
Simple daily strategies to improve health.
Cristin Stokes and Neal Andrews
MUS Wellness
May 2014

2.  “If you made a New Year’s Resolution for 2014, how
would you describe your success thus far?”
 Very successful
 Somewhat successful
 Unsuccessful
 I did not make any Resolutions this year
Poll Question!

3.  …is how we live our lives.”
 We can break down how we live by a series of
behaviors and habits.
 Intentionally, or unintentionally, these small
behaviors and tiny habits accumulate to form who we
are, including our health, accomplishments, and life
outcomes.
“How we live our days…

4.  One mistake we often make is setting outcome goals
without making appropriate behavior changes.
 I can set a goal to lose 10 pounds, but if I don’t change
certain behaviors that lead to weight loss, I will fail. I
can’t “think” the 10 pounds away.
 We must identify behaviors that we can either modify or
create that help lead to the desired outcome.
 Outcome goals are what we want. Behavior goals are
how we achieve outcomes, so focus on setting, and
following, behavior goals.
Behaviors and Outcomes

5.  Outcome goal: Lose 10 pounds
 Behavior changes to achieve goal:
 Drink water instead of sugar-containing drinks
 Eat breakfast
 Bring your lunch to work instead of going out
 Take the stairs instead of the elevator
 Go for a walk around campus on your breaks
 Get 150 minutes of exercise per week
 Focus on what to do instead of what NOT to do!
Behaviors and Outcomes

6.  …if you want to actually follow them.
 Changing behavior/Creating new behaviors is difficult.
 Tie to a trigger/anchor
 Start small
 Make it easy
 Remove obstacles
The rules of behavioral goals…

7.  Triggers elicit responses. Triggers tell us, “do
something now!”
 Anchors are behaviors that are already happening, or
can be external triggers.
 Examples: A cellphone ring is a trigger.
 Walking through the kitchen may be a trigger.
 Brushing teeth can be an anchor
 Reading the morning newspaper might be an anchor
 Getting out of bed may be an anchor
Triggers, Anchors, and Habits

8.  Assignment: Think of 3 or 4 triggers or anchor
behaviors in your daily routine.
 Examples:
 Brushing your teeth
 Reading the morning paper
 Pouring your morning coffee
 Eating breakfast
 Parking the car at work
 Bell towers or reminder alarms
 Walking in your house after work
Triggers, Anchors, and Habits

9.  Once you list anchors, you can begin to attach
desirable behaviors to them.
 Brushing teeth & flossing
 Reading paper and eating breakfast
 Eating breakfast and taking a supplement (i.e. vitamin or
fish oil)
 Pouring morning coffee and cleaning
 Parking the car and taking deep breath (relaxation)
 Getting out of your chair when your hear the Bell Tower
Triggers, Anchors, and Habits

10.  “Simplicity Changes Behavior.” –BJ Fogg
 Small changes create inertia, and lead to better
outcomes.
 Example: Flossing. Instead of flossing all your teeth,
just floss one. Brushing is an anchor, and we
attach the desired “tiny” habit.
 “When I brush my teeth, I will floss one tooth.”
 “When I pour my morning coffee, I will wipe the
counter.”
Start Small
BJ Fogg, 3 Tiny Habits

11.  Getting in shape
 If you workout zero days a week, don’t set a goal to workout 6 days a week
 Start with 2 or 3 days. Goals have to be realistic and manageable
 Improving diet
 A complete diet overhaul is overwhelming and impractical
 More practical:
 Include a fruit with breakfast
 Choose whole wheat bread instead of white bread
 Handling stress
 “When I park my car before work, I will take 3 deep breaths.”
 “When I go to bed, I will turn my cellphone off (or to silent).”
 Take a stretch break (find appropriate anchor)
 Have a designated meditative minute (find appropriate anchor)
 Financial
 “When I receive change, I will put it in a Piggy Bank for the entertainment fund.”
 “When I receive my paycheck, I will put $25 into my savings account.”
 “When I receive my tax refund each year, I will designate X% to…
Practical Examples

12.  Make the habit something easy.
 Good: When I pour my morning coffee, I will wipe down
the counter.
 Not as good: When I pour my morning coffee, I will clean the
entire kitchen.
 Good: When I park my car at work, I will take three deep
breaths.
 Not as good: When I park my car at work, I will meditate for
10 minutes.
 Good: When I hear the bell tower chime, I will get out of
my chair do three stretches for 10 seconds each.
 “When I eat breakfast, I will take my vitamin(s).”
Make it Easy

13.  Examples
 Water bottle on desk
 Fruits & vegetables washed & visible
 Smaller plates for portion control
 Workout clothes laid out for the morning
Make it Easy

14.  For a habit to form (much less stick), we must remove
obstacles.
 Part of making things easy is setting ourselves up for
success. Remove any barrier to your desired
behavior.
 Example: the Sunday food prep ritual.
 Example: the night before the morning run/walk.
 Example of a Fail: the guitar.
 Example of success: my Journal
Remove Obstacles

15.  Think of behaviors in terms of time.
 Dots: Behaviors that happen once.
 Spans: Behaviors that happen for a designated
period. One week, one month, etc.
 Paths: Behaviors that happen for life.
 Brushing your teeth.
 Washing your hands.
Dots, Spans, and Paths
BJ Fogg Behavioral Model

16.  When instituting new behavior, dots & spans are
advantageous, because we can handle them.
 Montana Moves Challenge of the Month:
 Bike Bingo: Dots.
 Montana Meals Challenge of the Month:
 Tracking Fruits & Veggies—span.
 www.tinyhabits.com Practicing 1-week span
behaviors, using many of these concepts.
Dots, Spans, and Paths
BJ Fogg Behavioral Model

17.  Outcome Goal (Big Picture)
 10 Behavior Goals
 Crispification (Make behavior Crispy)
 Who is doing what?
 When? (or how long?)
 How long? (Dot, span, path)
 What is most effective at…(helping achieve outcome)?
 What can I do right now?
Priority Mapping

18. Dots and Spans

19.  Write down your goals.
 “It’s not a goal unless you write it down.”
 Share your goals.
 Track your behaviors!
 Online
 Smartphone apps
 Journal or logbook
 Coming Soon: Wellness Portal
 Measure outcomes
periodically
Write it! Track it!

20.  It’s a law of physics, and it applies to us!
 Objects in motion tend to stay in motion/objects at rest
tend to stay at rest.
 Start small, and gradually build momentum.
 Celebrate victories!
 Do a dance.
 Say, “I’m awesome.”
Inertia and Momentum

21.  Rewarding yourself reinforces habits.
 Don’t reward yourself with something counterproductive
to your outcome goals
 Example: I worked out today so I can have a bowl of ice-
cream. (But maybe one spoonful if you are disciplined?)
 “Know Thyself”
 Neal’s two post-workout rewards:
 Recovery drink
 Uploading results
 Cristin’s reward:
 Gossip magazines!
Inertia and Momentum

22.  Lose the “All-or-Nothing” attitude!
 This is about learning new behaviors one step at a time.
 If you slip up or have a bad day, just get back on track
the next day (or meal).
 Or, if you don’t have a great breakfast, it doesn’t mean
the rest of the day is lost.
Don’t beat yourself up!

23. Don’t beat yourself up!
 Consistency over time is what matters.
 “How we live our days is how we live
our lives.”

24. The Water Fountain Story

25.  Create three new behavior goals for yourself.
 Choose your desired behaviors
 Keep it simple, make it easy, remove obstacles.
 Attach desired behaviors to existing anchor
 Pick a span of time to commit to this new behavior
 Celebrate your victories!
 Visit www.tinyhabits.com to interact with BJ Fogg’s
behavior model. It’s free, and only lasts a week!
Homework

26.  BJ Fogg Behavior Model and 3 Tiny Habits
 www.bjfogg.com
 The Essentials of Sport and Exercise Nutrition, John
Berardi and Ryan Andrews
References

27.  www.montanamovesandmeals.com
 www.facebook.com/MUSwellness
 @montanameals @montanamoves
 www.wellness.mus.edu
 wellness@montana.edu
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