From vision boards to squatty potties, make 2022 your year with these 22 tiny habits to change your life.

You don’t need to make huge, life-altering changes to improve your life. Just making tiny tweaks and implementing super easy habits can make such a big difference. These habits may seem simple, but when you put them all together it will blow your mind how much of an effect they have! So, without further ado, here’s 22 tiny habits to change your life in 2022…

1. Drink a glass of water as soon as you wake up

Put a glass of water on your night stand and then as soon as you wake up, before you do anything else, drink the whole thing! If you’ve had a good night’s sleep (and you don’t have a baby or a toddler who’s going through a sleep regression!) you’ve probably gone about 8 hours without putting any liquids into your body, so it’s super important to rehydrate first thing. I know not everyone likes water, but everyone can manage just one glass. Your body will thank you for it!

2. Get a squatty potty!

What’s a squatty potty, I hear you ask? It’s a stool that you can pop your feet on while you’re, well, going potty! It basically puts you in the ideal position to properly ‘eliminate’ in the bathroom. I’ve been using one for a couple of years and I cannot recommend it enough. It will change your morning poops! You can get ones that fold away or ones that are aesthetically pleasing, so there’s no excuses!

3. Positive affirmations

If you’ve been following me for a while you’ll know I love to meditate, but I want to specifically mention positive affirmations and positive self-talk. When you wake up (after you’ve drunk your water!) give yourself a hug and think about 3 things you love about yourself. I really love this mantra…

“I love myself, I love my life and I’m grateful for (fill in the blank).”

It feels a little weird to begin with, but once you get used to doing it and stay consistent with it you’ll find yourself feeling happier first thing in the morning. Even if you don’t fully believe what you’re saying, it kind of tricks your mind into believing it. 

4. Three daily to do’s

Banish those long, overwhelming to-do lists! Instead, think about 3 things every single day that you want to get done. Not only will it help you to feel accomplished when you check them off, but it will give you focus throughout the day. 

5. Focus on your breath

As much as I love meditation, I know that sometimes it’s impossible to commit to a 30 minute session. But even taking just 30 seconds to focus on connecting your breath – deep breath in, deep breath out – will make a stressful day calmer and more relaxed. You can do it in the shower or while you’re waiting for the kettle to boil, basically any time you’re feeling overwhelmed and panicky. 

6. The one touch rule

I love this one, and I’ve been trying to implement it more and more. It’s really simple – you just touch everything once. For example, when you walk in through the front door don’t throw your keys somewhere where they don’t belong, because you’ll only have to pick them up and put them in the right place later. Instead, put them in the key holder or on the rack or wherever they live first time. Instead of putting dirty dishes on the side which you will later have to put in the dishwasher, just put them straight in the dishwasher. This will not only help to declutter your space but it will also help you to feel calmer and more collected when your space is organized.

7. Put your phone on airplane mode before bed

Pick a time where every night you will put your phone on airplane mode and get OFF social media. If you’re on your phone right before bed it can lead to poor sleep and therefore tiredness. It’s also super freeing to be disconnected for a little bit each evening and morning.

8. Read for 10 minutes before bed

With your phone on airplane mode, you can commit to reading fiction for 10 minutes before you close your eyes for the night. You don’t have to be learning – now is not the time to be digging into a business or self help book! This is just 10 minutes of pure brain entertainment. I’ve been reading a lot of rom-coms and find it the best way to end my day.

9. Make your bed

Your parents didn’t nag at you to make your bed for no reason! There’s proven scientific evidence that making your bed in the morning makes you more productive. It’s easy, and subconsciously you know you’ve already checked something off your to-do list first thing. 

10. Get fresh air every day

Whether it’s going for a walk, stepping into your back yard or even just throwing open the windows each day, fresh air on your face and in your lungs is so important. It’s not normal for us to be inside all the time, so get outside even if it’s only for 15 minutes.

11. Tongue scraping

You can get these little gadgets that basically scrape all the gunk off your tongue. Sounds gross, but it’s such an important habit to implement! I love to do it at the end of the night after I’ve brushed my teeth. It doesn’t matter how well I’ve brushed my teeth, I always feel like there’s stuff left over on my tongue. The stuff that comes off with this gadget is so disgusting, and I don’t want it hanging around in my mouth!

12. Flossing your teeth

On a similar note, the stuff that gets stuck in your teeth is disgusting. If you’re not flossing, that’s the number one way you’re going to get cavities. 

Pro Tip: Run a little bit of coconut oil along your floss before you do it. Coconut oil is great for oral hygiene; it helps whiten and freshen, it’s antibacterial and it’s antimicrobial. You could also infuse it with some essential oils like tea tree, clove and peppermint. If you want an even quicker and easier way to do it, try my BeautyNut Skincare Oil Mouth Wash.

13. Chew your smoothies

You know I love my green smoothies, but if you want to digest it better and reduce bloating one thing you can do is to chew your smoothies. It sounds weird, but all you’ve got to do is swirl it around in your mouth and pretend like you’re chewing it. This will activate the digestive juices in your mouth which will signal to your body that you’re about to consume something.

14. Listen to a podcast in your free time

There are so many times in the day, maybe when you’re cooking or getting ready for the day, where you could be consuming content that will make you feel happier and more uplifted. There are so many motivational podcasts that can help to improve your life. These are some of my favourites:

The Joyous Health Podcast
The Goal Digger Podcast
The Rich Roll Podcast
Him & Her Podcast
The Genius Life Podcast
On Purpose with Jay Shetty

15. Add boosters to your morning drink

Whether you drink tea, coffee, herbal coffee, whatever it is, try adding something which will boost the nutritional value of it. With my herbal coffee I like to add in a scoop of collagen and a little cinnamon. Cinnamon doesn’t just add a delicious flavour, it’s also anti-inflammatory and helps balance your blood sugar. 

16. Add something green to every single meal

Whether it’s your smoothie, pasta, casseroles, soups or stews, add in some greens. You can even add a little spinach to brownies and you won’t even know it’s there! I love adding greens to my pancakes, and there’s a recipe for that in my cookbook.

17. Be mindful of your vocabulary

This is something I’ve really been thinking about over the past few years. If there’s specific words that you’re using a lot of and you find you don’t really connect with them or they just have a negative kind of tone to them, maybe try to switch it out with something else. Or just take it out of your vocabulary altogether. I don’t like using the word ‘just’, as in ‘I’m just going to do this’ or ‘I just want to ask’. It makes you feel unsure or insecure. If I hand my daughter Sage to her dad and say ‘I’m just going to take a shower’ it sounds like I’m trying to justify going for a shower. Another one is ‘busy’ which sounds very negative as opposed to words like ‘productive’. Saying sorry all the time is another one!

18. Wake up and go to bed at the same time every single day

You’ve probably heard this one before. Your body does so much better when it’s working to its natural clock as opposed to relying on an alarm clock. Try going to bed and waking up at the same time every single day, regardless if it’s a weekday or weekend. I know we can get into these habits where we wake up super early during the week and then we sleep in on the weekend, but it messes up our routine. What’s really great is when you do create a routine with your body it will naturally follow that rhythm. You’ll find you’ll start waking up without an alarm clock. 

19. Turn off your phone notifications

This is a big one I started doing years ago and it has changed my life – I’m not being dramatic! Turn off your phone notifications for email, instagram, facebook and anything else that’s pinging you all day. The only one I have on is text messages because usually people who have my phone number are messaging me because they’re friends or family members. It makes such a big difference when you aren’t getting pinged all day to do things. Because you have to physically go into your email to see any new messages you can be mentally prepared instead of getting bombarded all day.

20. Create a vision board

Whether or not you have made a vision board for the new year, I want you to either make one or put a couple of images on the desktop wallpaper of your laptop or computer. I made mine in Canva which is an online photo editing software, and they actually have a template for a desktop background which is perfect for this. It’s so easy to do and only took me about an hour. Now every time I go on my laptop I see it. It makes me feel good, it inspires me, it reminds me of my goals.

21. Show you partner some love

This is one I thought about because we have a one-year-old, and I know other parents can relate. You’re going through your day just trying to survive and get through the next 24 hours and you often forget

about your partner. They’re the person that you need to lean on for support. I feel like we forget how special this person is and you can go through the day sometimes not even giving each other much affection. I find a nice little habit to do is making sure you give your partner or loved one a morning kiss and a nighttime kiss. These little small habits of affection can go a long way.

22. Don’t carry your phone around the house

I know it’s tempting to just stick your phone in your back pocket and have it ready to go, but I find it makes us less present. If I’m playing with sage or I’m breastfeeding and my phone is right there I’m more likely to pick it up. Set it down somewhere you can still hear it if it rings or you get a message (hopefully your notifications are turned off) but make it so that it’s not right on you. It’s really refreshing to have that healthy separation. 

 

There you have it – 22 tiny daily healthy habits to change your life. Pick a few of them that you are going to try and implement this week. 

What are your favourite healthy habits? Leave a comment below!

If you’re interested in seeing more about habits and routines, check out these 5 Healthy Foods To Eat Every Day and 7 Digital Detox Habits To Start Now.