The new year brings us a tide of “make healthy new year’s resolutions” energy–but in these uncertain times, is it really a good idea to start a new routine when you’re not sure what the coronavirus, the economy, or the world might have in store?

Actually, it’s a great time to hit the reset button. When something happens to disrupt our everyday routines–like a global pandemic, awful as that is–it can also be an opportunity to replace old habits with new healthy ones. Indeed, one of the great lessons of the first waves of the Covid-19 pandemic was that we can take on new challenges. Whether it was learning how to teach our kids at home or how to improvise meals from less-available ingredients, we learned how to do it–and embrace it!

So, embrace the timing of the new year to add a new, healthy habit to your life. It might be the best time ever to make a positive change! Here are some tips to start a new healthy habit, and stick with it.

Make it specific. When you set a healthy habit goal, make the target behavior easy to find. That means defining your goal as clearly as possible, with specific times, quantities, and settings. Rather than saying “I will eat more fruits and vegetables,” for example, say “I will eat at least one serving of fruit at breakfast and 2 servings of vegetables at dinner.” Or, instead of pledging to work out two times a week, tell yourself “I’ll go to the 11:30 cycling class and get a smoothie instead of taking a lunch hour on Tuesdays and Thursdays.” When your goal has a time, a place, or a situation attached to it, it’s easier for you to visualize what success will look like–and easier for you to reach it.

Pair it with another habit. Habits result from repeating a behavior again and again, which triggers your brain to establish a pattern. Think about the habit patterns you already have–like brushing your teeth, making that morning cup of coffee, walking the dog in the morning and evening. Chances are you do these things so regularly you hardly even think about them. That makes those routines the perfect place to add a new habit–like taking your vitamins when you make your morning cup of coffee, spending 10 minutes in mindful meditation after you’ve taken the dog for her evening walk, or adding some dissolvable CBD powder to your evening herbal tea to help you rest easier. Behavioral experts call this technique “habit stacking,” and it’s a proven way to help make new routines stick.

Make it pleasurable to keep going. You probably already know that once you’ve set goals, you should reward yourself for achieving them, and set new goals and rewards as you go. Indeed, those self-incentives can be powerful. You’ll be even more successful, though, if you build in other pleasures as part of the routine, too. Try making the activity more enjoyable by adding some variety once in a while–say, swimming instead of running on some days, moving your daily walk to a local botanical garden every week. If you’re trying to eat more meatlessly, treat yourself to a meal at a vegetarian restaurant you love–or visit a new one each month. Another motivating trick is to save a special pleasure only for use during your healthy activity (like saving binge-watching your favorite show only for when you’re on the treadmill).

Be patient. Research suggests it takes at least a couple months for a new habit to take hold, long after most of us give up on our new year’s resolutions. But in the grand scheme of things, that’s not much time at all!  Keep stacking your habits, keep building in pleasures to make sticking with the habits enjoyable, keep rewarding yourself when you’ve reached a milestone. Sure, you’ll have some off days, but each day you’re on track you strengthen the patterns in your brain that, with persistence, help make a healthy habit become a daily part of who you are.

Caliper CBD is an easy way to add a healthy routine into your life. Whether you choose flavorless Caliper CBD powder that dissolves cleanly into any food or drink, or delicious Caliper Swiftsticks that you can pour directly onto your tongue, you’ll get the only clinically proven fast-acting CBD, your way. And Caliper’s precise 20mg packets are easy to bring along wherever you go, discreetly. Try making Caliper part of your daily wellness today!

+These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.