Want a better fitness routine? Use habit stacking 💪

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Imagine brushing your teeth and suddenly remembering to take your vitamins — without a sticky note reminder or nagging thought. Picture pouring your morning coffee and effortlessly jotting down what you'll eat for the day.

What if the secret to improving your fitness wasn’t so much about discipline or willpower, but about weaving new habits into the rhythm of what you’re already doing?

Habit stacking may be the best-kept secret you've been looking for!

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You already have some habits: getting dressed in the morning, traveling to work, or having a morning cup of tea or coffee.

Habit stacking pairs a new habit with one you already have. This method takes advantage of your existing habits by anchoring a new habit to an existing one. Your brain is more likely to reinforce habits to stick better and become part of your routine!

Habit stacking works because our brains build routines. Repeating actions after an existing habit creates a "cue-behavior-reward" loop — a routine that becomes automatic with time. Soon, it becomes easier to stick to the new habit (behavior) without even thinking about it!

For example, as your morning cup of tea or coffee is brewing, take those few moments to meditate or do deep breathing. Soon, you'll habitually meditate or deep breathe with every morning cup of joe or tea!

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To use habit stacking, you only need to determine which habit you will stack or connect with another established habit you already have.

Step #1: Identify your existing habits.

This is as easy as writing a list of things you do regularly. It might look something like this:

• Getting dressed

• Brushing your teeth

• Lying out your clothes for the next day

The list can be as long or short as you like.

Step #2: Identify new fitness habits you want to develop.

Jot down your fitness goals. Some suggestions are:

• Taking vitamins

• Meditating

• Stretching

• Walking

• Weight lifting

Step #3: Create your habit stack.

Now, pair your existing habits you identified with a new habit you want to develop. Remember that the new habit should logically follow the existing one.

You wouldn't want to pair weight lifting with brushing your teeth!

Step #4: Carry out your habit stack.

Attach the new fitness habit you want to develop to a relative existing habit. Perform the habit stack daily, reinforcing and making the new habit stick.

Step #5: Make adjustments as needed.

If a habit stack isn't working, you can adjust it by pairing the new fitness habit with another existing one or changing the order of the habit stack.

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Need some inspiration on what fitness habits to stack? Here are some examples:

Morning routine:

• After I brush my teeth, I'll take my vitamins.

• After I pour my cup of coffee (or tea), I'll meditate for two minutes.

Mid-day routine:

• After I sit for 30 minutes, I'll do one minute of yoga.

• Before I eat lunch, I'll drink a glass of water.

Afternoon routine:

• When I get home from work, I'll put on my workout clothes and lift some weights.

• After I eat dinner, I'll go for a walk or run.

Household chores:

• As I'm vacuuming, I'll do lunges.

• While I'm folding laundry, I'll walk in place.

Nighttime:

• Before going to bed, I'll practice relaxation techniques.

• Before going to sleep, I'll meditate and clear my mind.

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Improving your fitness doesn't have to be a grueling process filled with hours of exercising. Try habit stacking!

Remember these steps:

If you'd like to learn more about habits and how they're formed or how you can improve your fitness, check out these Bytes:

• How are habits formed?