People Are Sharing The Most "Benign But Absolutely Unhinged" Habits They Formed During The Covid-19 Lockdown

While having a routine in your daily life is vital to prospering (that way, we don’t always have to be on edge and we save a ton of energy), not every habit appears to be built the same. Obviously, some habits like binge-eating junk food, binge-drinking, and smoking are harmful to our health, even if they help structure our day.

The helpfulness of other habits depends on how much we engage in them. For example, while the science on the benefits/drawbacks of drinking coffee might flip-flop a tad, the general consensus appears to be that it’s good for your health in moderation.

However, going overboard with your love of coffee can wreck your health and even result in a caffeine addiction which is a very nasty thing to kick later on down the line. Hello, headaches and irritation. Starting your morning with a cup of Joe might be romantic (hey, everyone does it in the movies!) and might be a small ritual, but you have to ask yourself if you need the coffee or if it’s simply something that you want to drink. There’s a very important distinction there.

On the flip side, habits like exercising, eating fresh food, getting plenty of fresh air, being in the sun more (remember your sunscreen), socializing (even if it’s via Zoom or Facebook), and staying hydrated are positive and improve our mental and physical health. They very obviously help improve our quality of life, though they can be a pain to upkeep until we get in the habit of doing these things on a regular basis. We all know the benefits of exercise, but far from every one of us gets as much daily movement as we should.

You could actually say that Nikki’s habit of eating a pickle every sunset isn’t as ‘out there’ as it sounds. Some fermented pickles contain probiotics that protect our microbiomes and help the friendly bacteria in our gut be fruitful and multiply. We’re not sure how much of an impact a single daily pickle can have, but it can add a tiny bit of variety to your diet and it can actually be a bonus. Compare that to saving the stuffing from Oreos and you can see the difference.

Odds are, you’ve picked up a bit of knowledge about how long it takes to form a habit over the years, dear Readers. However, the science behind forming habits isn’t as clear-cut as we’d like. The time necessary can vary wildly from person to person.

Healthline points out that it can take some people a mere 18 days to form a new habit. Meanwhile, others can take up to 254 days to make the behavior something that they do regularly, nearly without thinking. The average time for making new behaviors automatic appears to be 66 days. However, that depends on the person, the habit itself, and how much effort is put into the whole ordeal. Our advice? Start slow. Maybe with a single pickle and a single lap around your neighborhood.