Reality check questions...

Ok, so I felt very smart when I came up with this theory. I was thinking, how can you carry out a reality check if you aren't lucid? Or do you do a reality check once you are lucid? Just something I thought of...

When dreamers don't know or aren't sure they're dreaming, they aren't lucid.

Generally, dreamers do a reality check because they aren't sure if they're dreaming or not. Because the reality checks are done when the dreamer is not sure of whether they're dreaming or not, the dreamer is not lucid until the reality check makes them sure they're dreaming. The exception is if the reality check is done after being sure they're dreaming just for fun or as part of a stabilization routine rather than genuinely checking their state.

When not lucid, the dreamer can carry out a reality check because the dreamer can still associate awareness of the dream with things other than what they're aware of, including with doing a reality check. The associations form a chain, which leads the dreamer to realize that they're dreaming.

An example of association chain would be: flying dolphin=impossible=do a reality check=reality check fail=dreaming

The dreamer can associate impossible things or anything else with reality checks, so because they can still make these associations when not lucid, they can do a reality check when not lucid.

Yes I do RC just to confirm. And well "how can you carry out a reality check if you aren't lucid?", just do it now, that's how :D.
When you make it a habit then sometimes you might do it in a dream which will reveal it.

Thanks for clearing that up for me! :)

The funny thing is, all these weird things can be happening in and around you...places you have never been before...and you blindly accept them as part of reality...and then one little thing might alert you to do a reality check. I guess that is the power of learning dream signs.

I do reality checks in waking life to remind myself to be aware and question my reality, instead of just floating along through life like it's a non-lucid dream. That way (in my reasoning at least) I'm more likely to notice something odd, or notice that the feeling is different inside a dream and become lucid. I haven't (yet) become lucid because of a reality check, and I've never had to confirm it's a dream with one -- once I question it, I seem to just "know" whether it's a dream or not unless my subconscious throws up some weird explanation and I brush it off. However, doing a reality check in a dream does seem to make my awareness and clarity increase, possibly from the excitement of seeing the check succeed. I'm hoping that I'll be able to randomly do a reality check in a dream out of habit as others have stated, as a way to become lucid instead of just by feeling or seeing something odd.

Your daytime practice of RC will start happening in your non lucids just by force of habit. When you use awareness while RCing during day (practicing), you will also gain some awareness in your non-lucid at the same time when you get an urge to RC.

By then you will most likely know you are dreaming, but some RC anyway by force of habit or by decision and this confirmation puts you "over the hump" and then you will know for sure you are dreaming.

Happy dreams