In this post: Why good habits are a great way to create more health & happiness in your life, 30 good habits to implement, and tips on getting started today!
Habits can make or break you and it is definitely worth being intentional about the habits you allow into your life.
In this post, I’ll be sharing 30 good habits that will have a positive impact on your life by helping you to be healthier and happier.
But first, what is a habit?
A habit is a behaviour that we do regularly enough that it becomes nearly automatic. This makes it easier to maintain these actions as routines and rituals we do on a regular basis.
When practised enough, we can do our habits on auto-pilot, without needing to waste any of our decision-making or willpower capacity. This allows us to spend our mental energy elsewhere to make the most of our lives.
But beware…
It’s easy to fall into bad habits if we are not paying attention and, let’s be honest, in today’s fast-paced world, it’s easy to get caught up in everything that has to be done and not really think about how we are doing it.
But habits can play a large role in our day-to-day lives, including affecting how we feel and act. This makes them potentially powerful tools we can use if we can consciously harness the behaviours we include in our habits.
So then, what habits should you try and create in your own life?
30 Good Habits To Start For A Healthy, Happy Life
So let’s dive into 30 good habits to introduce to your life:
1. Get out of bed quickly: Don’t hit snooze! You’ll only feel more tired when you do get up. Try a 5-second countdown if you’re struggling to get out of bed (5, 4, 3, 2, 1, get up!).
2. Get up early enough to give yourself enough time to get ready calmly: Rushing around in the morning can leave you feeling stressed out before you even leave home. Give yourself plenty of time for what needs to be done so that you can stay calm & collected.
3. Drink plenty of water: Start with a big glass of water just after you get up to rehydrate your body after sleep and then aim to drink regularly throughout the day. It may help to keep a water bottle with you or to get into the habit of having a glass of water before every meal.
4. Eat a nutritious breakfast: Eat something to fuel your body and brain so you can operate at your best. Here are some great breakfast ideas to try!
5. Move your body: Exercise is gold when it comes to your health & happiness so stop telling yourself you don’t have the time or energy and get moving! If you’re not feeling very enthusiastic, try going for a gentle walk or doing some yoga. Here are some ideas for starting your exercise habit.
6. Do something you enjoy each day: Time can go really quickly, so make sure you’re not putting fun & enjoyment off for some other day by starting a habit of including something you enjoy each day. (Forgotten what is fun for you? Read this post!)
7. Plan your meals out in advance: By meal planning ahead of time at the start of the week (or fortnight or month if you want!), you can save yourself a lot of time during the week. If you are feeling extra motivated, do a big grocery shop for all the items you will need AND pre-cook some meals where possible!
8. Plan (& prep) your day the night before: Get into the habit of spending some time before bed making sure you are organised for the following day. Get out your clothes, load the washing machine, put the dishes away, prepare tomorrow’s snacks if possible, pack up any dinner leftovers for lunch the next day. This will save you SO much time in the morning!
9. Keep a prioritised To-Do list: Get clear on what needs to be done and then prioritise your actions ahead of time. This is a great time and sanity-saver to keep you from missing important appointments, deadlines and taking action on your goals.
10. Journal: Journaling is a powerful tool for your health & happiness. It can be a way to sort through your thoughts & feelings, boost your self-awareness, work on your mindset, and more! Need help getting started? Click here!
11. Visualise: Top athletes visualise their performance ahead of time to improve their game and you can use this tool for your own life too! Start visualising your day going well and you feeling healthy & happy as you go to bed a night. Then once you get the hang of it, visualise yourself achieving your goals and what it will feel like when you get there.
12. Set & uphold boundaries around your work times: Stick to a regular start & stop time so that your mind & body learn when it’s work time and when it’s rest time.
13. Take a proper lunch break: Get away from your workspace and do something different for a while like going for a walk, seeing friends for lunch etc… This will help to keep you fresh & productive during your work.
14. Stretch every 30-60 minutes: This is especially important if you sit at a desk, drive for long stints, or move your body in a certain way repeatedly for a long period of time. Set yourself a reminder to stretch regularly and your body will thank you for it!
15. Spend some time outdoors each day: Connecting with the world outside can really help to keep things in perspective. When you go outside and look up at the sky or spend some time marvelling at nature, you come back to what is important to you.
16. Have a ‘wind-down’ routine before bed: Avoid all screens, journal, stretch or do light exercise, read a printed book or magazine, listen to some soothing music… anything that helps you to get to sleep quickly.
17. Practise gratitude: Focus on the good things in your life by having a gratitude ritual you practise each day. Don’t know where to start? Click here!
18. Practise self-care: Take a bit of time out of your day to do something that nourishes you in some way. For a list of self-care ideas, check out this post!
19. Use affirmations: Build up healthy beliefs about yourself & what is possible for you with the use of daily affirmations. Click here to learn more about affirmations.
20. Get creative: Allow yourself to express yourself through a creative outlet (whatever takes your fancy!)
21. Be your own best friend: How we treat ourselves is SUPER important, so make a habit of acting like your own best friend & cheering yourself on. Check out this post for tips on how you can be your own best friend.
21. Meditate: Meditation has a wealth of benefits such as reduced stress & anxiety, increased focus, better sleep, improved self-awareness and more happiness in your life. Head here for some helpful meditation apps you can use.
23. Use a planner: Start a habit of planning out your week in advance and mapping out what you want to get done. This helps you to make time for the important stuff rather than getting caught up in the day-to-day busyness of life.
24. Declutter: Give yourself the space to think & relax by decluttering what you don’t need. This will be different for everybody so go with whatever brings you a sense of peace & happiness.
25. Practise mindfulness: Learn to harness the power of your focus by practising mindfulness each day. For 5 ways to do this without meditating click through to this post.
26. Take action towards your goals: The best way to achieve your goals? Take some action, no matter how small, towards them each day!
27. Learn: Continual learning will keep your brain active and open you up to new possibilities (& opportunities!).
28. Look after your health: Take preventive care measures to keep yourself healthy. This includes things like: brushing your teeth twice a day, wearing sunscreen outside, eating well, staying hydrated & exercising.
29. Connect with others: As a shy introvert, I am a massive homebody but I do feel better within myself after I make the effort to connect with others. Feel the camaraderie by connecting with like-minded individuals or those working towards the same goals as you.
30. Build up your confidence: Don’t let fear stop you from living the life you truly want, do something every day to build up your self-esteem and courage. For some ideas, check out this post!
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Tips For Starting A New Habit
Starting a new habit can be hard! Here are some tips to keep you on the right track:
- Choose one habit or routine to start and establish at a time
- Connect to a strong reason why you want to establish this new habit
- Get support and accountability from your friends or a group going through the same experience
- Set reminders on your phone or use a habit app
- Use a habit tracker (see below for a free one!)
- Join a course like the Make It Stick Habit School. This is the course I used to set up new healthy habits! (affiliate link)
If you are hoping to set up multiple habits at once, I recommend setting them up as part of a morning routine or a nighttime ritual so that you can do them all in one go.
Setting up healthy habits has definitely changed my life for the better and brought me a lot more happiness. I hope these habits help to do the same for you! (If you find something is not working out for you, feel free to tweak it to suit your own lifestyle).
Free Habit Tracker
I’ve created a free habit tracker to help you start your new habits! You can grab it in pink or black by clicking on the relevant image below:
Here’s to starting healthier habits and feeling better in yourself and happier in your life!
Much love,
Sarah xo
Tell me, are you inspired to start one of these good habits in your life and, if so, which ones?
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