Have you ever seen the adverts designed to help people stop smoking that talk about hitting the 28 day mark?
They usually specify some variation of “If you can make it to the 28 days smoke-free, you’re five times more likely to quit for good” (which is what it says on the NHS website).
I’m not really sure that the maths on that makes any sense.
If you haven’t made it to 28 days then you’ve definitely not quit for good (at least at that point).
So you could argue making it to 28 days makes it infinitely more likely.
But the point is, there’s usually a sweet spot beyond which continued success becomes somewhat easier and more likely.
Behavioural change being relatively hard to start with and becoming easier over time.
Which is good to know.
Because you know it’s just going to get easier.
If you keep going through the more difficult bit, it will, on average, get easier.
For us at RISE the equivalent is 20 sessions.
I crunched the numbers on it a few years ago.
Whilst our retention is good for the industry, there are people that leave at every stage of the journey.
A few don’t even make it into a first session.
Then a few don’t come back after that one.
A few don’t make the third, and so on.
But, by the time you make 20 sessions, you stand a pretty high chance of making 50.
And at 50 you stand a pretty good chance of making 100 and so on.
It’s completely understandable.
The adjustment in that first 20 sessions is the big one.
We’re a bit sore after the first few.
Find it all a bit confusing as well.
We aren’t looking and feeling any different just yet.
And it’s tempting to think some variation of “I can’t do this”.
And it’s the same with making changes to the food side of things.
Or our drinking.
Or anything else really.
There’s no hard and fast science as to how long it will take.
Habit formation isn’t that straightforward.
But the key is that it will get easier with time.
The more “reps” we get in, the easier they get.
But only by doing them.
And every time we stop, with the intention of having to start again in the future, we’re just going back to rep zero.
Restarting that hardest bit.
Worth remembering next time we’re tempted to do that.
Much love,
Jon ’28 Days Later’ Hall
P.S. If you want to “start again” but this time for the final time, then jump in here for our risk free four week trial –> www.myrise.co.uk/apply
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RISE in Macclesfield was established in 2012 and specialise in Group Personal Training weight loss programmes for those that don’t like the gym and find diets boring and restrictive!
