By Kerry Hale

How To Use Habit Stacking in Your Daily Routine

  • Saturday 28 June 2025
  • 4 minute read

Learning how to habit stack is one of the most effective ways you can build new routines. By thoughtfully linking new behaviours to existing habits, you can create sustainable changes that transform your daily life. 

From optimising your shower routine to enhancing your mornings, this guide offers useful tips to help you effortlessly introduce habit stacking into your lifestyle.

Understanding the Science of Habit Formation

Our brains form habits through neural pathways that strengthen with repetition, primarily in the basal ganglia – the part responsible for automatic behaviours. Every habit follows what scientists call the ‘habit loop’:

  1. A cue or trigger that initiates behaviour.
  2. The routine or behaviour itself.
  3. A reward that reinforces the behaviour.

What is habit stacking?

Habit stacking is a simple yet powerful technique that pairs a new habit you wish to develop with an existing habit you already do consistently. Your established routine will become the natural cue that prompts the new behaviour.

Creating your habit stack

To help you enjoy the benefits of habit stacking, we’ve compiled some morning and evening habit stacks below.

Morning routine

Your morning sets the tone for your entire day, making it the perfect time to implement good morning habits. Identify what you do each morning without fail - like brushing your teeth or taking a shower - and use these as triggers for new practices.

The habits you decide to stack should be small and achievable, ideally ones that can be completed under two minutes, for example:

  • After pouring your morning coffee or tea, drink a full glass of water.
  • Practice breathing techniques after brushing your teeth.
  • When you finish breakfast, write down your top three priorities for the day.

Evening self-care

Evenings are equally valuable for habit stacking, particularly in developing self-care routines that can improve sleep quality and reduce stress. After establishing your existing habits, like arriving home from work or eating dinner, try implementing practices that help you unwind and relax.

For example:

  • After dinner, take a short walk to decompress.
  • Try a gentle stretching routine after your evening shower.
  • When you arrive home from work, have a quick tidy-up so you can enjoy your evening in a relaxing space.

 

Stay consistent with your new habits, and you’ll find that the ones you stack will naturally become a part of your routine.

Anchoring new wellness habits to existing ones

Select anchor habits that naturally encourage your new ones. Ensure they’re stable and consistent practices that you already perform, and they should feel appropriate in the context and timing for the new habit. If the new behaviour isn’t sticking, maybe you haven’t chosen the right anchor. The connection should feel natural rather than forced.

Wellness practices work especially well when stacked with simple self-care habits, like brushing your teeth or showering. For example, you could take a probiotic after breakfast or do ten squats after brushing your teeth.

Using habit stacking in your shower routine

Your daily shower offers the ideal environment for habit stacking. Transform your bathroom routine by implementing the following habits:

Water temperature rituals

Implement contrast showering by alternating between hot and cold water. This simple practice stimulates circulation, boosts immunity and increases alertness.

Research suggests that cold exposure may even reduce inflammation and improve mood by triggering the release of endorphins. If you’re new to cold showers, start with a brief cool rinse at the end of your normal shower. Gradually extend the duration as your tolerance builds.

Our innovative ColdBoost technology offers four settings that lower the water temperature at your preferred pace and duration, providing a controlled, personalised cold water experience.

Find more information on the benefits of hot vs cold showers here.

Mindfulness practice

Use your shower time for mindfulness practice, as you’re already isolated from distractions and engaged in a sensory experience. If you’re taking a morning shower, set an intention for your day ahead, or practice deep breathing when showering in the evening to help you feel relaxed. These practices transform an everyday routine into a rejuvenating ritual that benefits your body and mind.

Tracking and maintaining your habit stacks

Keeping your new habit stacks on track requires consistency and adjustments, as you may not get it right the first time. We’ve devised some tips to help:

  •  Track your progress: Use a habit-tracking app, a journal or a visual tracker to maintain accountability.
  • Celebrate the small wins: Acknowledge each successful day to strengthen the reward part of the ‘habit loop’.
  • Start small, then expand: Begin with just one or two stacked habits before gradually expanding once these feel automatic.
  • Adjust when necessary: If a habit stack isn’t working after several weeks of consistent effort, analyse why, and try a different approach.

If you’re ready to improve your daily routine with habit stacking, your shower is the perfect place to start. Explore our range of innovative showers to enhance your showering experience.

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