Pages about “Foundations”
- MovementRegular activity gives a small, reliable lift in good moods, and a single walk helps within minutes. For training plans, go to liftgood.now.
- Evidence: Strong
- Takes: 10 minutes or more, most days
- SleepShort sleep makes good moods rarer and bad moods stronger. Improving sleep improves how you feel. For the how-to, go to sleepgood.now.
- Evidence: Strong
- Takes: 7 or more hours a night
- Alcohol and caffeineAlcohol helps you fall asleep but breaks up the second half of the night, and hangovers often bring anxiety. Caffeine can make you jittery, especially in large doses.
- Daylight and time outdoorsAim for about two hours a week in green spaces and some daylight every morning. The evidence is mostly surveys, but it's consistent and the cost is low.
- Evidence: Some
- Takes: about 2 hours a week
- Food and regular mealsBeing hungry makes you more irritable, and eating more fruit and vegetables goes with better wellbeing. The effects are modest. For the full picture, go to eatgood.now.
- Evidence: Some
- Takes: three meals a day
- Phone and social mediaScreens are not as harmful as headlines say, but using less social media gave small mood gains in trials. Fewer notifications and a phone out of reach at meals are easy places to start.
- Time with peopleTime with other people is one of the most reliable links to feeling good. Regular, ordinary contact counts, including short chats with acquaintances.