Latest news with #BJFogg
Irish Examiner
04-08-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Life Hack: What is habit stacking, and how can it help with household chores and more?
Some days it's not the massive must-dos that wear us down but the seemingly endless tiny tasks that pile up around us. The straw that breaks the camel's back is never a time-consuming, labour-intensive job but rather the one extra plate added to the washing-up pile or the overflowing recycling that should have been tipped into the wheelie bin a day ago. It can seem endless but there are some techniques that allow us to chip away at the chores without even noticing. The best example of this is habit stacking. What is habit stacking? Habit stacking is an increasingly popular productivity method where you link a new habit with an already existing one. It was created by BJ Fogg as part of his Tiny Habits programme and has reached a wider audience thanks to James Clear's bestselling book Atomic Habits. 'When it comes to building new habits, you can use the connectedness of behaviour to your advantage. One of the best ways to build a new habit is to identify a current habit you already do each day and then stack your new behaviour on top. This is called habit stacking,' Clear writes. 'Habit stacking is a special form of an implementation intention. Rather than pairing your new habit with a particular time and location, you pair it with a current habit.' With this method, people are encouraged to tack on a habit to an already existing one. The habit stacking formula is: After/Before [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT] and it can be as simple as ensuring you floss every time you brush your teeth. Why does habit stacking work? Its beauty is in its simplicity, by anchoring something to a current routine it takes away the need to make decisions and factor extra time for establishing new habits. As anyone who tried and failed to implement a new year's resolution will tell you, sticking to a new habit is the hardest job of all. This method 'hacks' your brain to make following a new routine much more natural. "Your current habits are already built into your brain. You have patterns and behaviors that have been strengthened over years. By linking your new habits to a cycle that is already built into your brain, you make it more likely that you'll stick to the new behavior,' Clear explains. 'Once you have mastered this basic structure, you can begin to create larger stacks by chaining small habits together. This allows you to take advantage of the natural momentum that comes from one behavior leading into the next.' With this in mind, here are some common areas where many people use habit stacking. Chores Housework can feel overwhelming. How often have you cleaned the kitchen only for it to become overrun with dirty dishes and grime in what feels like no time? Habit stacking can help make housework feel less relentless, turning your downtime into essential productivity. We'll start small with this one. If you start your day with a cup of tea or coffee, there are a couple of minutes here where you are waiting around and have time to spare. Using the habit stacking formula, you simply add a step to an already existing pattern. For example: 'After I start the coffee machine, I'll unload the dishwasher.' This extra task only takes a couple of minutes, so the time you're in the kitchen waiting anyway can be put to good use. Later in the day if you're hungry, you might decide to reheat leftovers from yesterday's dinner for today's lunch. We can use another formula here: 'While waiting for the microwave to finish heating my food, I'll wipe the counter.' Self-care While useful in household management, we can use habit stacking for personal wellness too, helping to establish anything from a better skincare regimen to dedicated meditation time. For this area, think of something you have been meaning to start doing. Perhaps your skin is dry but you always forget to moisturise. Habit stacking for this as simple as: 'After I shower, I'll apply moisturiser' Your existing practices can benefit from habit stacking too. Meditation, for example, is lauded for reducing stress and anxiety, improving focus and concentration, better sleep, and increasing emotional resilience. Again, however, it can feel impossible to find extra time for it. Habit stacking just layers it on an existing task, in this case also ensuring you spend the recommended two minutes brushing your teeth: 'While brushing my teeth, I'll listen to a two-minute meditation.'
Tom's Guide
01-06-2025
- Health
- Tom's Guide
Too busy to work out? I added thousands of steps to my day using this simple trick
Walking is often recommended as one of the simplest ways to improve your health. It's been linked to a longer lifespan, better metabolism and a more balanced mood. But even though we know it's good for us, finding time to move more during the day can sometimes feel impossible. If your job keeps you glued to a desk or you're always rushing between tasks, getting in those extra steps might be the last thing on your mind. I decided to walk more during the workday. It felt like an easy win. No gym membership, no equipment, just a straightforward way to break up long stretches of sitting. I even wear one of the best fitness trackers to keep an eye on my step count, but still find it hard to make walking a consistent habit without setting aside time I don't have. When I first heard the term "habit stacking," I thought it was just another wellness buzzword. I imagined advice telling me to wake up at 5 AM, drink greens, work out, journal and meditate before breakfast. But it's actually much more approachable. Habit stacking means linking a new habit to something you already do; for me, it turned out to be the easiest way to walk more without changing my whole routine. If you struggle to build new habits that actually stick, you're not alone. That's where habit stacking comes in. The idea is simple: you add a new habit onto something you already do every day. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. It doesn't have to be walking. It could be drinking a glass of water while your usual morning coffee brews or doing a short mobility routine while catching up with your favorite TV show. The concept was popularized by James Clear in his book Atomic Habits, but it originally came from BJ Fogg's Tiny Habits program. His approach focuses on creating small, positive changes by linking new behaviors to existing routines. It works because the brain loves patterns. When you tie a new habit to an existing one, it strengthens the mental connection between them, making the new action feel more automatic over time. But can I back this up with my own experience? Here's how I used habit stacking to increase my step count. Getting to work, running errands, meeting friends, or heading to appointments are all part of a typical week for me. If you also usually default to public transport, it's worth checking if you could walk instead, even just for part of the journey. That simple swap helped me fit more movement into my week without needing to block out extra time. Walking between commitments gave me space to reset, clear my head and arrive feeling more focused. It also made me feel less rushed and more present than sitting on a crowded train or bus. If your route is too long to walk in full, try getting public transport halfway and walking the rest. You could also walk there and catch a bus or train back. Small tweaks like this can make it easier to hit your step goal and feel more energized throughout the day. I started thinking about my daily habits and where walking could naturally fit in. At one point, I considered investing in one of the best under-desk treadmills so I could walk while working. It's a great option if you're often tied to your desk and want to move more without heading outside. I decided I didn't want to spend money just to increase my steps, but it's still worth checking out if that setup suits your routine. Instead, I looked at where I was already spending time on my phone, mainly checking in with friends and family. Rather than doing that from the sofa, I grabbed my headphones and headed to the park. I'd walk and talk, or send voice notes, and before I knew it, I'd clocked up a couple of thousand steps. If you work from home, walking meetings are another simple way to move more. You could take non-video calls on the go, especially those that don't require note-taking. Research shows that walking meetings can help boost creativity, plus, the fresh air makes for a welcome change from sitting at a desk all day. I've run two marathons, and one of my favorite things about long training runs was the uninterrupted time to listen to podcasts. Those hours on my feet gave me a rare chance to tune in without distractions. After finishing my most recent race, I noticed that space in my day had disappeared, so I decided to bring the ritual back by pairing my podcast habit with a daily walk. There's something really grounding about getting outside, moving your body and listening to something that either makes you laugh or teaches you something new. I listen to a lot of food podcasts, so I often come back with a head full of recipe ideas or a mental grocery list. If you're into food too, Off Menu is a must. On days when I need a motivational push, The Mel Robbins Podcast always helps shift my mindset.
