Kicking the Habit
Reviewed August 2026
Some of us are well aware that the tick of the clock from one year to the next is not the only new beginning available to us. We're aware a misstep can be let go and we can start working on that new goal again with the next new dawn. However, many of us let a slip or two derail the whole project and we give up – retreating to the comfort of old patterns.
Changing habits is one of the hardest things to do.
It may sound funny to you, but along with helping to align musculoskeletal systems and getting brains talking to bodies better, a big part of what chiropractors do is work to change people's habits. How they hold their bodies (a.k.a. posture); how they work and play in their bodies (a.k.a. ergonomics); how they think about their bodies and their pain (a person's perspective on this has a huge impact on their recovery). As chiropractors, if we don't shift the habits that contribute to the imbalances in the person's body, then even brilliant work on their spine and nervous system will only have short term benefits - the person will undo all the chiro's good work with their ongoing detrimental habits.
So even though some people would wish it otherwise, healing requires a team effort – input from the health professional and a commitment to implement changes in daily habits on the part of the patient. Often they are very ingrained habits that need to change. It's not easy. It's also a contrast to the old way of thinking – that fantasy of being able to go to a health professional, be provided with a magic pill that will instantly resolve the problem at hand and proceed on your merry way, healed and back in the condition you were at seventeen. Place the problem in someone else's hands to fix and abdicate all responsibility for both the problem and the resolution of that problem... A sweet fantasy, but a fantasy just the same.
Healing is a change, and sometimes change requires you to work for it.
The people who achieve the most wonderful changes in their health and wellbeing at the Adelaide Chiropractic Centre are those who meet us, the chiropractors, half way. They follow the guidance we give them and work to change unhelpful habits. From slowing their pace of life so they can get some headspace (a huge challenge for a busy parent); to changing how they exercise to work better with their body's needs (say shifting from running to swimming); to taking on the hierarchy at the workplace to organise a standing desk (with the goal of reducing time spent sitting as a trigger for their pain)...all sorts of person specific changes.
So changing habits is something we talk to people about in our practice every day. We know a bit about making those changes more achievable. New Year's Eve may have come and gone once again, but if you want to make a change and shift a habit, or turn "I know" into "I do", here are our tips:
- Pick One ~ taking on multiple changes at once may be a challenge too far [the exception being losing weight – shifting weight requires BOTH eating well and increasing exercising...but it doesn't need to be extreme].
- Today is good...and restarting tomorrow if something goes awry is fine. No guilt trips.
- Work out the when. When will it fit in the day/week? And then make it happen. Mornings are best for a new exercise program as then it can't be superseded or derailed by the day's events if it's already done.
- Bite sized pieces. A big goal is awesome (e.g. I want to run in the New York Marathon), but you need to break it down into progressive steps depending on where your starting point is. Make it real, and achievable, and then remember to celebrate and acknowledge your achievements along the way.
- Choose new activities that you have some chance of enjoying. If that new exercise program is a drag or torture then it will not last long.
- Stopping a bad habit or introducing a good one ~ identify a trigger. Often habits are unconscious. You need a way of bringing your awareness of the issue at hand to mind regularly. For example: a bright sticker on the frame of your computer monitor will catch your eye regularly and remind you to check that ergonomic tweak you're working on; if you're trying to shift your posture and there are kids in your world – they love being tasked with reminding you if you're slouching and will be great little canaries!
- Pride is not an asset. Some habits require input from more team members to change. A person shifting an addiction (smoking, gambling, drugs, alcohol, food) may need more structure and professional advice around the project. It's okay to ask for help and there are brilliant people out there ready to be a part of your team. Your GP is a great initial resource here.
- You have to want to change. It can't be someone else's goal (e.g. your partner, your mum, or the health professional's suggestion regarding what might be good for you). If it is someone else's goal for you it is unlikely to succeed.
- Excuses are not helpful. Point blank. Stick with it. Or to channel Yoda,
"Do or do not. There is no try".
- Relapsing into bad habits is normal. We're all human. Learn from previous efforts, you CAN do it, and get back into action now.
New Year's Eve is a fun night for a party, but it's not the be all and end all of creating change in your life. Take a moment to think about how you would like to be. Then take the time to plan changes so they fit into your world, they are enjoyable (as much as is possible) and they are achievable. We'd be happy to help you create health changes at the Adelaide Chiropractic Centre. Call on 8221 6262 and make an appointment to speak to one of our chiropractors now.