Tiny Life Improvements

If you have read Atomic Habits, Tiny Habits or The Compound Effect then you know that small habits can compound into great things!

This year one of my quests (goals) is to Take Care of Myself. And I have been doing a lot of thinking and journaling around that to find out what that exactly means to me – and how on earth to do it without it feeling like a huge chore!

My plan has emerged as making three small tweaks every month! I want small, effortless changes that are easy to stick to. Each on it’s own may not be much, but if I have made 36 tiny changes by the end of the year that could have a big impact.

My plan as I go through the year, is to make each tweak:

Small
Effortless
Easy to remember to do

With 36 changes throughout the year I don't want to be having to track them too closely or making superhuman efforts to get them all done. So I will try to tie them into existing routines and habits as much as I can.

Monthly Life Improvement Tweaks

Disclaimer :

I am not a health professional. These are just my ideas for tiny tweaks and I am sharing in the hope I will inspire you. Please do your own due diligence!

January

In January I am starting with nutrition. The three tweaks I came up with are -

Improve my breakfast. I am a bit strange in this regard as I have a portion of basmati rice cooked in the rice cooker every morning, served with a dab of butter! I know, I know! But I love a warm, easy breakfast and am not a big fan of porridge. My tweak is to add a frozen vegetable into the rice cooker to just up the nutrients a little. My favorite so far has been a cube of frozen spinach! Surprisingly delicious.

You probably don’t have as weird a breakfast as me but maybe there is a small tweak you can make? Less sugar? Adding a vegetable or a piece of fruit? Switching to cooked rice instead of rice krispies (just saying!).
Anxiety Busting Seed Mix! So honestly ChatGPT helped me with this one! We came up with an anxiety busting seed mix for me to add into my meals (I am especially thinking lunch).

Anxiety-Busting Seed Mix Recipe

2 parts Pumpkin Seeds: High in magnesium and zinc, essential for calming the nervous system and supporting mood regulation.
2 parts Flaxseeds (Ground) : Packed with omega-3 fatty acids to support brain health and reduce inflammation.
1 part Chia Seeds : Rich in omega-3s, fiber, and antioxidants for stable energy and reduced stress.
1 part Sesame Seeds : High in calcium and magnesium, which help regulate stress responses.
1 part Sunflower Seeds : High in vitamin E and selenium, which protect against oxidative stress and support mood stability.

Daily Dose: 1–2 tablespoons.

Note: Some seeds can cause an allergic reaction in some people. Start slow and start small!

This has proved a pretty yummy and effortless addition.

Ginger Tea. I mostly drink hot water throughout the day instead of tea. I am not totally perfect – I do quaff two cups of coffee first thing in the morning! But then I just switch to water and I like it warm. My third tweak is to add a slice of ginger root. I used to do this years ago and got too lazy! Ginger root has all kinds of good anxiety busting properties so this small change might have some small benefits too. Worth a try and easy enough to do.

And a small tip! You can slice and freeze ginger root so it keeps nicely.

February

I found my January tweaks easy to do, even when I was a little off color during the month. Each tweak was small and tied into something I was already doing. I decided to stick to health type tweaks again for February. My three tiny improvements for the month are:

Ankle Circles. Ankles don't really get much love even though they are a very hard working part of our body. Ankle circles can improve mobility. There is a great article about the benefits of ankle circles here. If you do them standing up then I think this would be a good way to train balance too.

My plan is to add these in when I am standing in front of a sink! Hand washing, teeth cleaning, doing dishes - there are quite a few opportunities. Even if I only remember a couple of times a day it should help.
Take eye breaks when using a screen. I am on the computer a lot so starting this month I want to take little breaks for my eyes. There is a 20/20/20 rule - you should look away from the screen for 20 seconds every 20 minutes. And look at something 20 feet away.

To help me build up this habit I installed the BreakTimer App. Every 20 minutes it pops up and encourages me to take a 20 second break. Is it annoying? Absolutely! Although you do have the option to skip or snooze if you are busy. But I am committed to at least trying to take a break when it appears. It is a good opportunity to stand up and look out of the window.

Speaking of which...

Touch Grass! I want to try to go outside every day even if it is just for a few minutes. Working from home I do have days when I don't venture out (especially in the winter!).

I was inspired to do this by the site 1000 Hours Outside. They have an app (chargeable) and some printable trackers. They encourage everyone to aim for 1000 hours outside during the year. To be honest, 1000 hours sounds like a LOT to me and not exactly a tiny tweak. So I have added a daily tracker to my planner and I get to tick it if I can say that I went outside for at least 5 minutes.

If you would like to track exactly how much time you spend outside then the Timelines Time Tracking app (iphone only) is a good one to help. Or something like the Clockify app. Both apps are free as far as I am aware (with chargeable pro options).

Adding new habits are not easy and I decided I needed a little help! I have added a reminder on my phone that asks me (at 3pm) "Have you been outside today?". If it is a day I have been stuck indoors, then I will take the time to grab coat and shoes and take a wander. With the added benefit of increasing the number of steps I do!

I have been excited to work in these tiny life improvement changes so far this year!

I am hoping to add 3 tiny tweaks every month. Come back and I will update you as we go through the year!