Everything seems early this year. When your friends went missing from Facebook in February it took you about a week to figure out it was for Lent. You promised your niece a “girls day” on Spring Break without realizing exactly how soon it really was. As you look at your calendar to find a day the two of you can go to book browsing and have afternoon tea you see a dreaded appointment in your calendar.
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME BEGINS
The spring forward is a disruption to your daily rhythm but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing.
Ever heard of the clean stale principle? Gretchin Rubin devotes a whole chapter to in it in Better Than Before and it is one of my favorite habit creation tools. Basically when we experience a life change we have an opportunity to begin anew. It can be as big as getting married or as simple as going on vacation. Anything that takes us out of normal patterns and routines gives us a better chance at making a new habit stick. The jolt of the clocks shifting forward an hour may be just what you need to put a new habit into place.
That makes this weekend the perfect time to pick a new healthy behavior to make a habit. See the shift in daylight and seasons as way to make a fresh start. Not sure what to focus on? Here are 15 healthy habits to start with the change of the clock. Just remember your chances of success are higher if you pick just ONE.
- Talk a walk after dinner
- Watch the sunrise
- Pack your lunch for tomorrow
-
Start a split shift: Work does not have to be done in one big chunk. Get up a little earlier so you can take a mid day break to exercise or read. Take off work a little early to pick up the kids and then go “back to work” while they do their homework or after you put them to bed.
- Drink a glass of water before your morning cup of coffee (or tea)
- Take an afternoon tea break
- Meditate before you go to bed
- Set a daily nap time
-
Do a supplement check: Start taking your multivitamin or stop taking supplements that don’t make sense in your routine any more. (Do you really need iron anymore?) Talk to your doctor to see if there is anything else, like fish oil or vitamin D, you should be taking.
- Start a weekly planning ritual
-
Start a transition ritual: Create a buffer between work and home. You can take a walk around the block when you arrive home before you go inside, take the scenic route on your commute or stop at a park on the way home and sit in the sun for 5-10 minutes.
- Set an alarm to go to bed.
- Pick a day to take a weekly Social Media Sabbath
- Start wearing your activity tracker again
- Read more by signing up for Audible
Which thing on the list speaks to you? What other healthy habit are you going to make with the help of Daylight Savings Time and a clean slate.
Need more ideas? Check out my new book, Motivation Is Made Not Found, for more habit inspiration!
