9 simple habits to refresh your health routine this spring

Longer days, warmer mornings and fresh produce actually worth buying. Spring gives you a head start most other seasons don't. You don't need to overhaul anything or start a strict new plan to feel the benefits. Nine small habits are enough to refresh your health routine this spring. Pick a few that suit you, save the rest for later, and build from there.

1. Step outside before you open your phone.

   Spend the first few minutes of the day outside instead of on a screen. Even two minutes outside with a cup of tea sets a calmer tone than scrolling in bed. It costs nothing and it's an easy habit to keep because it doesn't compete with anything else on your plate.

2. Build breakfast around protein.

   CSIRO research found most Australians only get around 11g to 15g of protein at breakfast, well short of the 25g per meal shown to help control hunger and improve muscle metabolism. Scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, or a smoothie made with high-protein yoghurt all get you there without much extra effort. They're the same kinds of breakfasts built into the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet meal plans. Most of us load our protein onto dinner instead, then wonder why the mid-morning hunger hits so hard.

3. Let what's in season shape dinner.

   Asparagus, peas and broad beans are turning up now, fresher and tastier than anything shipped in over winter. Plan a couple of meals around whichever fresh vegetables look best that week rather than a fixed list. It's the same thinking behind the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet's own spring recipe collection. You'll eat better and spend less without really trying.

4. Swap one workout for an outdoor version.

   You don't need to give up the gym. Just trade one session a week for the same thing done outside. If you'd normally hit the treadmill, run the same route through the park instead. If it's a strength session, take a resistance band to the backyard. The effort's the same, but warmer weather makes the outdoor version far less of an ask than it was in July, and you may find it's the session you're least likely to skip.

5. Keep water within reach as it warms up.

   It's easy to under-drink through a mild winter and then feel it once the heat properly arrives. A bottle on the desk or in the car does the reminding for you. Finishing a glass of water before your first coffee is an easy rule to stick to.

6. Make cooking dinner the default, not the exception.

   Pick one extra night this week where cooking is already decided rather than up for debate at 6pm. Plan roughly what you're making the day before, so tired-you doesn't have to think it through. It usually costs less than the takeaway it replaces, too. Need a hand with this one? Our higher-protein meal plans take the guesswork out of what's for dinner.

7. Get ahead of the 3pm slump.

   If the afternoon has you reaching for whatever's closest, that's the habit worth resetting first. Nuts, a boiled egg, or fruit with a bit of cheese will keep you going without the crash that follows something sugary. Keep it within arm's reach so it's the easy choice.

8. Add a short wind-down walk after dinner.

   This one isn't about exercise. It's about closing the day properly. The light now lasts long enough for ten minutes around the block most evenings, and you don’t need gear or a route. It settles you before bed in a way that sitting straight down in front of the TV doesn't. And because it asks so little, it's one of the easiest habits on this list to keep.

9. Set tomorrow up tonight.

   Laying out your walking shoes, packing a piece of fruit, or filling the water bottle before bed removes the one excuse that usually gets in the way the next morning. It takes two minutes and means tomorrow's habit doesn't have to rely on tomorrow's motivation.

Ready for more than a few new habits?

Spring's a great time to start, but these habits work all year round. When you want a bit more structure, the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet turns habits like these into a plan, with higher-protein meal plans, recipes and a community of Australians doing it with you, all backed by CSIRO research.

Not sure how much protein you need? Find out in a couple of minutes with our free protein calculator.