Habit stacking: Your secret weapon

Motivation isn’t something we can rely on. Some days you’ll feel motivated. Some days you won’t, and that’s completely normal.

But the reason some people are more successful than others isn’t motivation. It’s because they’ve learnt to stack habits successfully – and I’m going to teach you to do the same.

What is habit stacking?

Habit stacking is exactly what it sounds like.

Instead of trying to create a brand new habit from scratch, you stack it on top of something you already do consistently.

For example:

• After I make my morning coffee, I will drink a glass of water.
• After I brush my teeth, I will do 5 minutes of stretching.
• After I finish lunch, I will go for a 10-minute walk.
• After I put the kettle on, I will fill up my water bottle.
• After I finish work, I will change into my workout clothes.

The existing habit acts as a reminder, meaning you don’t have to rely on memory, motivation or willpower.

The idea of habit stacking isn’t new – I don’t know where it originated, but it was brought to the mainstream by James Clear, whose book, Atomic Habits, is well worth a read or listen.

Why habit stacking works

We already have busy lives and – if you’re anything like me – you never get to the end of your to-do list.

When we decide we’re going to be healthier, we often try to add lots of new tasks:

• Exercise more
• Drink more water
• Eat more protein
• Walk more
• Sleep more
• Stress less
• Journal daily

And trying to do all of those, all of the time, can be overwhelming.

This is where habit stacking helps because you’re not creating a whole new routine, you’re simply attaching a small action to something that’s already happening. And small actions done consistently are what create lasting change.

Make habit stacking obvious

One of the easiest ways to make habits stick is to make them visible.

For example:

Want to drink more water?
Leave a bottle on your desk.

Want to do your kettlebell workout?
Leave your kettlebell where you’ll see it.

Want to eat more protein?
Keep protein-rich foods at eye level in the fridge.

Want to walk more?
Leave your trainers by the front door.

The easier something is to see, the more likely you are to do it.

My personal habit stack, which never fails, is this: After I brush my teeth, and before I get into bed, I lay my workout clothes out where I can see them (on my piano bench, to be precise but I appreciate most people don’t have a piano in their bedroom).

Reduce friction to enjoy habit stacking success

Think about the habits you want to build and then ask yourself:

“What makes this harder than it needs to be?”

Maybe:

• Your workout clothes are buried in a drawer.
• You don’t know what you’re having for dinner.
• You keep forgetting your water bottle.
• You don’t know when you’re going to fit exercise in.

The more decisions or barriers you remove, the easier consistency becomes.

Start smaller than you think

Lots of people go wrong trying to change too many things at once.

They decide they’re going to:

• Walk 15,000 steps every day
• Exercise 6 times a week
• Never eat chocolate again
• Drink 3 litres of water immediately

Then life happens.

So instead of trying to change too much at once, focus on the easiest habits first. The goal isn’t to impress anyone except yourself. Your brain needs to know you can trust yourself, because every time you follow through on a small promise to yourself, your confidence grows.

What is the 3-3-3 rule for habits?

The 3-3-3 rule for habits isn’t a hard and fast rule, but it is a useful frame of reference when it comes to making your new habits stick. It measures habits in 3 milestones: 3 days to push through the initial installation of the habit. 3 weeks for it to become routine, and 3 months for it to become a permanent lifestyle change.

What is the 21-90 habit rule?

Similar to the 3-3-3 idea, 21-90 is the idea that it takes 21 days for a habit to become a routine and 90 days for it to become a permanent change.

Do I think either of these time frames are true? Well broadly speaking, yes, though for some people it’ll be a longer or shorter time frame of course.

The hardest part of starting any new habit is the first 21 days. Those initial 3 days – or even the first week – you’re hyper conscious of it and vigilant. Then into weeks 2 and 3 and you’ve got to start pushing yourself more and more to maintain your new habit – which is why I say don’t take on too much all at once.

But after a while, you’ll start to view your habit as just something that you do now, and that’s when you’ll know you’ve stacked successfully.

Your habit stacking challenge….

Choose ONE habit you’d like to make easier.

Then ask yourself:

1. What existing habit can I attach it to?
2. How can I make it more obvious?
3. How can I remove friction?
4. What’s the smallest version I can commit to?

Here’s an example (this is a genuine thing I do!):

I want to workout three times a week.
1. I can do my workout straight after I’ve had my morning coffee.
2. I will leave my workout clothes out the night before so I see them on waking.
3. I will schedule my workouts in my phone so they’re in every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 7.30-8am
4. I will commit to doing at least ten minutes three times a week.

Remember: You don’t need to overhaul your life overnight. You just need to make the next healthy choice a little easier than it was yesterday.