How to Develop Healthy Daily Routines and Stick With Them
What if I told you that the secret to building a happy, healthy, successful life starts and ends with your daily routine? Routines make you healthier and many attribute their success to the specific habits and routines they've nurtured.
James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, has a wonderful quote, "Your outcomes are a lagging measure of your habits. Your net worth is a lagging measure of your financial habits. Your weight is a lagging measure of your eating habits. Your knowledge is a lagging measure of your learning habits. Your clutter is a lagging measure of your cleaning habits. You get what you repeat."
If you aren't proactive in working on developing healthy habits, you could inadvertently be sabotaging your own success. Rather than allow yourself to succumb to the pressures of everyday life, wouldn't it be so much better to take life back into your own hands?
In this article, you'll be armed with some of the best tools required to establish a new set of healthy daily routines. You also will have gained the confidence needed to stick with it for the long haul.
Fast Facts
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Adding in too many changes to a day will likely be difficult for the patient to sustain and may result in "behavior relapse."
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On average, cementing a new behavior as a habit takes a bit over 2 months (66 days to be precise). The good news is once the habit is established, maintaining the behavior is seemingly automatic.
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With established habits and routines, you will be more resilient to the stressors of everyday life
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Establishing good sleep and household routines is directly linked to healthier bmi and mental health
Tips For Success
Create the routine that is right for you
Tailor your daily routine to your unique preferences, energy levels, and commitments, ensuring it aligns with your individual needs and goals for a higher chance of long-term adherence.
Healthy routines need to make time for your physical well being. Make sure you include a nutrition-rich diet, exercise, and prioritize getting a good amount of sleep each night.
These healthy daily routines will give you the energy to apply to your day and any other habits you'd like to build.
Start small
Begin with small, manageable daily routines to build momentum and increase the likelihood of long-term success in maintaining healthy habits.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is often quoted for some of his thoughts on life and improvement, "Just as long as you do something every day, that is the important thing." The takeaway is that when establishing a new routine to follow, you can't overwhelm yourself.
As long as you make a single, small step towards your goal every single day, you will make more progress than you thought possible. Over time, you can start adding to it, and before you know it you'll have an incredible routine established that will keep you ahead of the competition.
The small things add up.
Add to your existing habits
Enhance your chances of sticking to daily routines by integrating new habits into your existing ones, leveraging established behaviors as anchors for change.
This is often dubbed "Habit Stacking" by Bj Fogg and referenced by James Clear. You more than likely already have established habits that you can leverage and take advantage of.
You'll find it significantly easier to establish and maintain a new habit if you "stack it up" on top of an already existing one.
Let's say you're a coffee drinker and want to start doing 30 minutes of reading every day. You can stack the reading habit onto the coffee habit by reading in the morning every time you have your cup of joe.
Swapping Bad Habits for Good Habits
Replace detrimental habits with healthier alternatives to transform your daily routine, gradually building a more sustainable and positive lifestyle.
This one is easy to say but in practice can be particularly difficult. To start, identify any bad habits that you want to eliminate. Identify the cue that pushes you to act on the habit.
This cue could be getting home from work for the day and you now instinctively sit down on the couch. What you intended to be a quick 15 minute break turns into a multiple hour tv binge session.
Rather, realize that you've established a habit of sitting on the couch after work. Force yourself to go on a walk first thing when getting home instead. Not only would this reinvigorate yourself for the rest of the day, but you're killing two birds with one stone.
Plan ahead
Boost your success in maintaining daily routines by proactively planning your activities and setting achievable goals, ensuring you stay on track and minimize surprises.
Many often say that winning the day starts in the morning. I disagree; winning the day actually starts the night before. If you aren't disciplined and haven't set the intention of going to bed early, how can you expect yourself to follow through and get up at 6am?
Setting yourself up for success in advance is the true way to succeed. Establishing new habits is a difficult and lengthy process, so you need to set yourself up for success.
Make the time for things you enjoy
Allocate dedicated time in your daily routine for activities you truly enjoy, promoting motivation and a sense of fulfillment that can help you stick with your healthy habits.
When setting new goals it's often easy to start really strong and burden yourself with too much work. Being a high achiever is fine as long as you give yourself the mental space and time to relax. Remember, health and habit building isn't a race. You need to be in it for the long haul.
Reward yourself for small victories
Incorporate rewards for achieving small milestones within your daily routine to reinforce positive behavior and stay motivated on your path to long-term success.
What works really well is working rewards into your routine after difficult activities. For example, before allowing yourself to play the ps5 at night, you need to go on a brisk run or do the dishes. You can turn the activity you want to do into a reward for doing the things you don't want.
Don't beat yourself up if you miss a day
Maintain a forgiving attitude and avoid self-criticism if you happen to miss a day in your routine; instead, focus on getting back on track and staying committed to your long-term goals.
Remember that you're human and will make mistakes. Accept that and forgive yourself. Your mindset is just as important to success as consistency. In establishing a positive outlook on the days where you fall behind, you'll be doing yourself a favor by getting you back on the track.
12 daily habits for your health
Let's get into the actual habits that you can incorporate into your day to greatly improve your life and health.
1. Prioritize sleep
Make quality sleep a top priority in your daily routine to rejuvenate your body and mind, supporting overall health and well-being.
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Not getting sick as often
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Helping with appetite
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Reducing stress & improving overall mood
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Helps with learning
We all know what it feels like to not get enough sleep. The best thing I ever did for myself was prioritizing my sleep above all else.
This is number 1 for a reason and is pretty essential if you want your other habits to stick easily.
2. Walk more
Incorporate regular walks into your daily routine to boost physical activity and enhance your overall health, even through simple, consistent steps.
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increased cardiovascular fitness
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reduced risk of heart disease and stroke
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Improved management of hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes
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increased muscle strength and endurance
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reduced body fat.
It also provides substantial mental benefits. I always try to start my day off with a walk as it puts me in the right headspace to conquer the day.
3. Read for 30 minutes
Devote 30 minutes each day to reading, a habit that not only enriches your mind but also promotes a healthy daily routine by fostering relaxation and learning.
Reading is a great habit that enriches your life by providing new insights and learnings into any topic you choose.
4. Meditate
Allocate time for daily meditation to reduce stress, improve mental clarity, and enhance your overall well-being, making it a vital component of a healthy daily routine.
Getting into meditation can be a little daunting to start but there are plenty of tools to make the transition into a daily practice that much easier.
My tool of choice is headspace which provides simple guided meditations that act as a great entryway into meditating for those who haven't done it before.
5. Spend time in nature
Incorporate regular outdoor activities and spend time in nature as a daily habit to rejuvenate your mind and foster a stronger connection with the environment, promoting holistic well-being in your daily routine.
Benefits to spending time outdoors in nature:
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improve your mood
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help you take time out and feel more relaxed
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improve your physical health
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improve your confidence and self-esteem
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help you be more active
Getting outside during the middle of a day at your most sluggish point can be a great way to help power you through the rest of the day.
6. Drink more water
Stay hydrated by incorporating the habit of drinking more water into your daily routine, supporting overall health, bodily functions, and maintaining a consistent sense of well-being.
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regulate body temperature
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keep joints lubricated
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prevent infections
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deliver nutrients to cells
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keep organs functioning properly
When your not properly hydrated you can find it difficult to focus and maintain some of the other habits you are trying to establish.
7. Reduce alcohol intake
Promote a healthier daily routine by limiting alcohol consumption, allowing you to feel more energetic and focused, while also supporting your long-term well-being.
Alcohol has negative effects on other areas of your life such as sleep. Regular drinking can affect the quality of your sleep making you feel tired and sluggish. This is because drinking disrupts your sleep cycle.
8. Quit smoking
Commit to a smoke-free daily routine to significantly improve your health, increase your longevity, and ensure a better quality of life.
Studies have been performed for years showing the detriment that smoking not only has on the smoker but on those in the direct vicinity of them.
Smoking is a perfect habit candidate to be replaced with a healthier habit in the long run.
9. Spend time with those you love
Incorporate quality time with loved ones into your daily routine, as nurturing meaningful relationships not only enhances your emotional well-being but also provides a strong support system for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
These are the people who will lift you back up when you struggle. It's important to maintain and foster these relationships.
10. Take a break from electronics
Regularly disconnect from electronic devices as part of your daily routine to reduce screen time, combat digital fatigue, and promote mental clarity, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more balanced lifestyle.
A great way to start (this can be difficult in our modern age), is to begin the day without electronics for at least the first hour of the day.
Rather than having your phone/email/texts dictate the direction of your morning and therefore your day, you should advocate for more control.
11. Take on a new hobby
Integrate a new hobby into your daily routine to stimulate creativity, reduce stress, and add a refreshing dimension to your life, contributing to overall health and well-being.
Building habits around a new hobby is the perfect way to foster building new skills. You would also be surprised at how quickly you can gain competence in something when given consistent daily effort.
Other Helpful Info on Daily Habits
Take a look at my article on habits successful people often follow for a more curated list that can help you achieve your more ambitious goals.
FAQ
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What does a healthy daily routine look like?
This obviously varies based on individual needs but in general you should be incorporating high quality sleep, nutrition, fitness, self-care, and social obligations into your daily routine.
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What are the 3 foods you should eat everyday?
Diets vary but the often cited top 3 are some form of lean protein, vegetables, & nuts.
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How do you stay motivated?
Motivation is short lived and fleeting. The better question is how you can cultivate the proper habits to achieve your goals and establish the discipline needed to stick with them when you don't feel like it.