13 Habits to Start Now in Your 20s (or Whenever) for Long-Term Physical & Mental Wellbeing

Who has read Atomic Habits by James Clear? I can’t raise my hand just yet, though I am a frequent reader of his 3-2-1 Newsletter in which he shares three of his own ideas, two quotes, and one question to ponder. 

Many of the newsletter musings harken back to the theme of habits: how to create good habits and how to kill the bad ones.

Since I’m a big fan of lists and daily routines and most things related to self-improvement, you can bet that building good habits and habit tracking is right up my alley! 

Plus, I just turned 27, so I’m definitely starting to feel the looming cloud of Turning 30 and all its rude questions like, “Do you have your shit together?” “Are you on a road to failure?” “Have you been wasting your 20s on useless endeavors?” 

The usual, you know. 

But while I do truly believe that life doesn’t end at 30 and that we can continuously recreate, redefine, and reinvent ourselves, it does help if you’ve got at least some things in your life running efficiently on autopilot in the background. 

Enter the art of creating good habits—the ultimate snowball effect for personal growth.

It doesn’t have to be so hard. You can start today working on developing one new good habit—and then reap its benefits for all the weeks, months, and years you continue.

Whether you’re a young 20-something just dipping your toe into the world of adulthood or you’re rapidly approaching the 30-year-old milestone and you’re starting to panic, today is a great time to start.

Here are the best habits to develop in your 20s:

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4 Good Habits to Develop in Your 20s for Your Physical Health

Ever heard the saying, “Health is wealth”? 

It may be a cliché, but it sure is true. Despite all those horrifying stories of billionaires trying to extend their lifetime with crazy diet and fitness routines, we’re all equal in one regard: We only get one body, one life. 

And even though you may feel young, strong, and invincible when you’re in your 20s, the day will eventually come when your skin starts to sag, your energy levels start to drop, and you start making that sighing noise whenever you get into or out of a chair. (And that’s if you’re lucky enough to grow old!) 

TLDR; take care of your body because you only get one. 

Here are 5 habits to develop in your 20s for your physical health:

1. Establish an exercise routine

The sooner the better. And no—it doesn’t really matter what it is. I’ve read countless articles with experts all quoted saying pretty much the same thing: The best exercise is the one you’ll actually do. 

So the next time someone tells you your workout is worthless because you’re not doing this exact, precise thing at the gym, you can tell them to kindly mind their own business. Basically, anything that gets your heart pumping and your body moving will do the trick. [Source: Harvard Health Publishing]

Personally, I’m all about yoga, pilates, and cycling. I try to do one of the above five times a week. Sometimes it’s three times a week. Sometimes it’s six. But I find that (like most habits) the more I do it, the more my body and my mind crave it. 

If you’re not a gym rat—no worries. Neither am I. There’s plenty you can do to get your body moving and your heart rate pumping without running nowhere on a machine under a fluorescent light like you’re in some kind of chilling dystopia. 

Instead, here are a few different types of exercise you can try if you don’t like the gym:

• Swimming
• Rock-climbing
• Kayaking
• Tai chi
• Jumping rope
• Jumping on a trampoline
• Hiking
• Roller-skating
• Dancing

2. Drink a glass of water first thing in the morning

Here’s a horrifying statistic: Apparently, 47% of Americans don’t drink enough water. [Source: CivicScience]

I don’t think I have to tell you the many ill side effects of dehydration, like disease, dizziness, and confusion. [Source: Mayo Clinic] It’s no shock that not drinking enough water will start to make you feel like crap. 

But—are you drinking enough water in the morning? 

Up until recently, I didn’t. I would wake up, maybe have a sip or two of water, and then move on with my day. 

And then complain later that I was always thirsty. (I know, it seems pretty pathetic in hindsight.)

But last winter, I tried something different. In the dead of the dark and cold when I forced myself out from under the warm covers, the first thing I did was chug an entire glass of water. And no kidding—that’s exactly what my body was craving. After hydrating first thing in the morning, my body is awake, energized, and ready to go. 

This may be painfully obvious for some of you. But if you fall into the camp of people NOT drinking enough water (apparently, that’s 47% of us), then consider trying this trick. 

It may just make your early mornings a lot less painful. 

3. Don’t skip doctor’s appointments (yes, you’ll have to schedule them yourself)

I’m looking at you, you who hasn’t been to the dentist in the last two years. 

When we’re younger (if we’re lucky), many of us have parents/caregivers who are responsible for making sure we stay on top of all our doctors’ appointments. But once you’re out there in the big, wide world all on your own, Mom stops picking up the phone to pencil in your biannual dentist appointment. (Or, at least, she certainly should.) 

Of course, having healthcare and the means to pay for it is its own whole thorny subject, and I’m not going down that rabbit hole in this blog post. 

Instead, I’m here to give you a friendly reminder (once again) that health is wealth and that proactive healthcare (i.e., seeing your doctor(s) regularly) is NOT something you want to skip out on. 

Consider this: Preventive care can help catch early signs of conditions (like high blood pressure or high cholesterol) that could lead to bigger problems down the road. [Source: Temple Health]

Plus, remembering to keep your regular doctors’ appointments can help you save money! After all, if you can catch a small problem before it becomes a big one, you can stay away from larger health bills. [Source: Chicago Booth Review]

So don’t sleep on this one. This is one of the top habits to develop in your 20s—and keep throughout your life.

Of course, you know you better than I do. (And spoiler: I’m not a health professional.) So the specific appointments you need to keep is a conversation you need to have with yourself and your doctor(s). But in most cases, typical annual doctors’ appointments you may want to keep include:

• General physician
• Dentist (biannually)
• Gynecologist (for the ladies)
• Eye doctor

Every time you go, make an appointment right then and there for next year and put it in your calendar. 

4. Start a simple skin care routine

Just as your body will thank you later in life for exercising regularly, your skin will thank you later in life for loving it every day with a special skin care routine. 

Don’t panic. You don’t have to do anything crazy. (Unless you want to.) 

The Internet is certainly ripe with literally millions of videos, blogs, and pictures of skin care routines with an incredibly dizzying array of products, products, products. 

You do not need them all. (Unless you want them.) 

Instead, there are really only three things you need to do to your skin every day for optimal health: 

1. Wash. (You really only need to do this at the end of the day.)
2. Moisturize. (Twice daily. At night is most important.) 
3. Wear SPF. (Every single day whether it’s rain or shine.) 

If your head is swimming and you have no idea where to begin, I recommend you stay off of TikTok and Instagram. That’s only going to make things more confusing (and more clickbait-y). 

Instead, here are two very good resources for skin care health, both of whom back up everything they say with scientific articles: Marie Veronique and Beautypedia. 

Specifically, I