5 simple habits that may improve your health (and the science behind them)

<p><strong>Key points:</strong></p><ul><li>Small, repeatable behaviors are more likely to stick and create lasting health improvements than complex routines.</li><li>When a behavior fits naturally into your day, you’re far more likely to maintain it.</li><li>Basics like sleep, light exposure, hydration, and attention management have outsize effects relative to effort.</li></ul><p>We have more health information and tools than any generation in history. And yet many of us go through the day tired, distracted, and feeling vaguely behind.</p><p><a href="https://chriswillx.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chris Williamson</a>, host of the Modern Wisdom podcast, has been there. Once a self-described “obsessive productivity bro,” he’s spent the last eight years interviewing some of the smartest people on the planet about productivity, health, and self-improvement. The common thread to his conversations: Meaningful health shifts often come from reducing friction around simple habits,&nbsp;not elaborate routines.</p><p>Former research biochemist, bestselling author of <em>Wired To Eat, and </em>LMNT co-founder Robb Wolf agrees. “The habits that drive the most meaningful change don't have to weigh on you. They shouldn't feel like a chore, or something you have to earn the right to,” says Wolf. “When something fits your life instead of interrupting it, you actually do it. And the compounding effect of actually doing it is where results live.”</p><h2>Why Simple Habits Stick</h2><p>Simple habits are more likely to stick than those requiring more planning and brainpower according to <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2023-75207-001" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">one meta-analysis</a>. This is certainly true when it comes to health:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>One <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12354995/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">2025 meta-analysis</a> found that sedentary adults who break up the day with short bursts of vigorous movement like stair climbing or short cycling intervals saw improved fitness over several weeks to months. In some of the studies, this movement was also associated with lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.&nbsp;</li><li>A <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2841069?" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">randomized trial</a> found adults with metabolic syndrome who implemented small, repeatable habits — eating vegetables at meals, taking brisk walks, and pausing before reacting to stress or eating —&nbsp;were more likely to see improvements in metabolic syndrome markers than people who only received health education and an activity monitor.</li></ul><p>The mechanisms seem to be automaticity and simplicity: Habits that don't require willpower are easier to repeat, and behaviors that repeat frequently are the ones more likely to shift metabolism, sleep, and energy levels over time.</p><p>It’s tempting to dismiss obvious advice like “eat more vegetables” as too simple to make a big difference. <strong>But the fundamentals keep resurfacing for a reason: They work.</strong></p><p>Here are five high-impact habits you’ve likely heard of — but maybe don’t do — that Williamson and Wolf swear by.</p><h3>Sleep with your phone outside of your bedroom&nbsp;</h3><p>“It’s the single cheapest, completely free lifestyle intervention that will instantly improve the quality of your life,” says Williamson.&nbsp;</p><p>Most people still sleep with the most stimulating device ever created <a href="https://today.yougov.com/technology/articles/53735-for-many-americans-their-smartphone-is-the-last-thing-they-see-at-night-and-the-first-thing-they-see-in-the-morning?" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">within arm’s reach</a>: 83% of middle-aged people keep their smartphones in the bedroom and 43% always or often check them within 10 minutes of falling asleep.</p><p>Phone use within 30 minutes of sleep is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389945724003186?utm_source=chatgpt.com&amp;__cf_chl_tk=u1LT3AXiY1Ah3eOjzbhAARJ0PIVY9THcr18guwmihgw-1770846822-1.0.1.1-u4gxmrJ0e.1Md1b2U3lhlxNQnzhLCpa6aULcXw0KTog" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">linked with</a> delayed bedtimes, shortened sleep, and daytime drowsiness. Screen light — especially bright or prolonged exposure — can suppress <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11154150/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">melatonin</a>, the hormone that signals it’s time to sleep.&nbsp;</p><p>Need help kicking your phone out of your bedroom? “Get a screen time app,” says Williamson. “From 7 a.m. till 8 p.m. you can use your phone, and then from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m., you can’t.” Think of it as intermittent fasting for your phone use.</p><h3>Start the day with sun and movement&nbsp;</h3><p>“My morning routine is to get up and walk. Fifteen minutes of sunlight in my eyes,” Williamson says. This strategy is shared by experts he’s interviewed, most notably <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@chriswillx/video/7163739666972167430" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Huberman</a>, who suggests getting 5-10 minutes of morning sun on bright days and 15-20 minutes on overcast ones. <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12502225/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Research</a> links sun exposure before 10 a.m. with better sleep quality and more restorative sleep the next night.</p><p>Morning light also:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Helps regulate your <a href="https://academic.oup.com/edrv/article/46/1/43/7739741?guestAccessKey=" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">cortisol awakening response</a> — different from stress-driven cortisol spikes — which is associated with alertness in the early part of the day.</li><li><a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12502225/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Anchors circadian rhythms</a> —&nbsp;the internal clocks that regulate sleepiness and alertness — by suppressing melatonin.</li></ul><p>If you take a stroll while soaking in the sun, you also lock in some movement. Even if you don’t get the recommended <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(25)00164-1/fulltext" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">7,000 steps</a>, you’ve already done something that nudges your physiology in the right direction.&nbsp;</p><h3>Use hydration as a force multiplier&nbsp;</h3><p>"If I'm not sufficiently hydrated, my brain doesn't work well,” says Williamson.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://science.drinklmnt.com/did-you-know/hydration-benefits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Staying hydrated</a> is crucial for energy, mental clarity, and mood support. Your brain runs on <a href="https://science.drinklmnt.com/electrolytes/why-your-brain-needs-electrolytes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">water and electrolytes</a>. When you’re dehydrated, your hypothalamus increases production of the hormone vasopressin, a hormone that helps regulate the body’s water balance by signaling the kidneys to conserve water. That signal may be associated with increases in stress hormones like <a href="https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/japplphysiol.00408.2025" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">cortisol</a>. Your <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4916775/?" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">brain</a> measurably (but temporarily) shrinks to maintain fluid balance in the body. <a href="https://oce.ovid.com/article/01445432-201101000-00007" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Neural activity</a> becomes less efficient, meaning your brain has to work harder to maintain the same level of performance.</p><p>Even mild dehydration can sap your ability to sustain attention, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ajhb.24051" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">research</a> suggests. That’s a problem when you’re trying to form new habits because <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2016.00386/full" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">executive function</a>, which involves attention, memory, and suppressing inhibition, is a driver of healthy behavior.&nbsp;</p><p>Mild to moderate dehydration of 1.5 percent to 3 percent loss in body mass also makes exercise feel significantly harder, according to a review in the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1728869X22000223" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Journal of Exercise Science &amp; Fitness</a>.<em> </em>Dehydration increases the rate of perceived exertion (RPE), making workouts feel harder than they otherwise would, which can lead to <a href="https://science.drinklmnt.com/did-you-know/how-dehydration-creates-junk-volume-impacts-training-quality" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">junk volume</a>.&nbsp;</p><p>In some cases, water alone doesn’t solve the problem. “Proper hydration isn't just about having sufficient fluids in your body,” says Williamson, who uses LMNT in the morning and during podcast recordings. “It's having the electrolytes to allow your body to actually use the water that you consume."&nbsp;</p>