Stacking Up

By ALICE O’BRIEN Alice O’Brien Counselling, Newmarket

We are all resisting the urge to say it…. There’s a grand stretch in the evenings. That grand stretch brings a lot of motivation with it, almost akin to New Year’s resolutions. We feel the need to fill the extra hours of brightness with new activities, going walking more, sending time in the garden, we might even consider taking up jogging, but let’s not get carried away.

It is easy to think of all the extra activities that we know will enrich our lives or benefit our health, who wouldn’t enjoy a walk in the Island Wood after work. It is not as easy to carry out these activities or keep them going as part of our routine after a few weeks. It is easy to slip back into well-established routines or habits that don’t always serve us well.

One way of implementing a new habit is by habit stacking. Habit stacking is a way of building new habits by linking them on to habits that we already have. The idea is that, instead of starting a brand new habit from scratch, which can just add to an already busy schedule, we add it to something we are already doing. An example might be if you wanted to increase your water intake, you could begin by drinking an extra glass of water after you brush your teeth every morning. Another example might be if you wanted to increase your step intake you might walk a lap of your work car park while making your phone calls.

How does habit- stacking work? Firstly it uses existing neural pathways of the brain. Your brain already recognises the initial habit so it can make room for the new habit easier, making it easier to remember and carry out. It also reduces decision fatigue. You don’t have to think about ways to get your steps in if you add it to your phone calls, you’re on the phone anyway, and you’re just walking now too. It also creates a chain- reaction, small wins build momentum, when we are successful at one healthy habit, we are more inclined to add extra habits to strengthen them.