Habit Stacking
Starting to form new habits of self-care can be extremely challenging. Whether you are trying to get back to some habits you used to have, or trying to form some new ones, habit stacking is a great tool to get you going.
Habit stacking is an amazing way to incorporate new habits into your day by piggybacking them onto existing habits and routines. Even if you’re thinking, “I have no existing habits and routines!”—there is always something to latch onto. Eating, going to the bathroom, brushing your teeth–we all have existing habits and behaviors we can hook onto. For instance, if you want to start incorporating breathwork into your day—as soon as your alarm goes off in the morning, make it “your breathwork alarm.” Do slow, deep belly breathing (at least six seconds in, six seconds out). Five minutes goes a long way–and everyone can spare five minutes. If you can’t, set your alarm five minutes earlier. It’s worth it.
Our Microworkouts concept links exercise to your meals for the day. We think of these short workouts as “punching our meal ticket” before each meal. It could be 20 squats, or 15 push-ups–any movement before a meal. We are all in the habit of eating throughout the day, so stacking a new habit on a mealtime is a great opportunity.
Another great one is to make a big glass of water the price of admission for your first coffee of the day. We (of course) love coffee–but starting the day with a big glass of water is a great start on staying hydrated for the day, and stacking these habits together is easy.
So, a practical application could go something like this:
Wake up
Breathe
Make your bed
Get a big glass of water
Go for a 10–20-minute walk—this moves a muscle and gives you some well-needed sunlight to set your circadian rhythm.
Take a cold shower
This morning routine is simple and checks a lot of boxes—but the beauty of it is that you don’t need to remember all of the parts, because after a while the entire routine becomes a habit, and you’ll do it automatically.
It’s important to not overwhelm yourself. Start with one simple thing and be consistent with it for a while and stack your habits from there—think of it as a self-care promise to yourself.
Until next time
Scott and Lennart