10 Daily Homestead Habits to Keep Yourself Healthy and Motivated

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The homesteading lifestyle isn’t easy, but we sure think it’s worth it, and you probably do too! Still, no matter how dedicated you are to a life of self-sufficiency, it’s important to know how to keep yourself healthy – both physically and mentally – for all the tasks that are on your plate. Let’s dive in to 10 daily homestead habits that will help keep you thriving and on track for a full and beautiful homestead lifestyle.

10 daily homestead habits to keep yourself healthy and motivated

1. Wake up early
2. Plan out your day
3. Eat a healthy breakfast
4. Think through the day’s meals
5. Get some exercise
6. Read something
7. Stick to a routine
8. Review your goals
9. Enjoy the people you love
10. Don’t forget to rest

Why health is essential for homesteaders

Let’s face it – homesteading is a lot of work. And hey, that’s partially why we love it so much! Whether the day’s tasks include fixing fencing, hauling feed bags, working with animals, gardening, harvesting, preserving, or fixing any number of things, homesteading takes muscle, energy, and determination.

If you’re not in good physical condition, you feel unsure about your goals, or you aren’t eating healthy meals, homesteading can be downright overwhelming. But with the right mindset, attitude, and a healthy body, keeping on task is much more achievable.

Let’s break down some of the top daily habits for keeping yourself healthy on the homestead.

1. Wake up early

Whether you naturally rise at 5:00am or you’d prefer to sleep the morning away, pushing yourself to make the most out of the daylight hours is one of the best ways to maximize your time on the homestead. You don’t have to get up before the sun. However, even starting your day at 7:00am will help you get a jumpstart on your daily tasks.

This way, you can have time to get something to eat, enjoy your morning coffee, and get the animals fed before the morning gets away from you. Checking tasks off your list before mid-morning also helps to build momentum for the rest of the day’s to-do list.

2. Plan out your day

For many self-motivated people, planning out the tasks of the day (and week) is one of the first things that the morning entails. After all, maximizing your productivity takes planning. It doesn’t just happen!

With so much to do on the homestead, it’s especially important to take the time to think about what needs to be accomplished each day. You may find it beneficial to have a master list for the week. Then, you can divide everything to fit each day’s schedule. Remember to keep your daily list full enough to be motivating, but realistic enough to not be discouraging. It can be helpful to differentiate the tasks that must be done from the tasks that you’d like to do.

3. Eat a healthy breakfast

Eating healthy foods at the beginning of the day aids your metabolism and replenishes your blood sugar to give you the energy you need for the day. It’s not only fuel for your body, but also for your brain – giving you motivation to accomplish all you need to do on the homestead.

Instead of sugary cereals, doughnuts, or no breakfast at all, opt instead for healthy, nourishing foods. Eggs, fruit, peanut butter, nuts, yogurt, or oatmeal are good choices.

4. Think through the day’s meals

Breakfast isn’t the only meal of the day that matters, though. Before you get busy with all the to-dos of the day, it’s helpful to spend a few minutes thinking about how you’ll feed yourself and your family later in the day.

Do you need to set out meat for dinner? Start the crock pot? Grab any produce out of the garden? Thinking through what you’ll prepare for all three meals will keep you from feeling overwhelmed and pressed for time when dinnertime arrives.

5. Get some exercise

Depending on what the day holds, your day may or may not already be filled with plenty of exercise! Still, it can be helpful to add some variety to your day if possible.

If you’re planning to muck stalls or pull weeds for hours, consider taking 10 minutes to go for a walk afterward. This gives your neck a break from looking down and becoming sore. Even if you’re getting a good workout in, adding some diversity to your routine is helpful for staying healthy and not wearing out your body.

If you plan to spend the whole day doing a less active activity such as preserving, sewing, or other household tasks, you might consider going outside to do a more physical job for awhile to get your heart rate up and breathe some fresh air.

6. Read something

There’s always something new to learn when you’re pursuing a lifestyle of self-sufficiency. Whether you want to learn a new skill, broaden your knowledge on something you’re already interested in, or just glean from other people’s thoughts, reading is one of the best ways to learn something new each day.

Make it a goal to set aside a few minutes each day to learn. Pick up a book, read an article online, or even listen to a podcast in order to expand your knowledge.

7. Stick to a routine

Having a daily routine is an excellent base for helping you to stay focused and healthy. It also helps you to get the most out of your hours. When you have a basic schedule to follow, you don’t have to waste extra time thinking out a new plan every day.

Having a routine is also helpful as you look at your to-do list for a day. When you know the basic plan of the day, you can easily figure out where each task fits best.

Of course, some days will look very different from others, and flexibility is essential on the homestead. However, having a somewhat consistent day-to-day gives you the ability to manage interruptions or abnormal days and still jump back into your routine.

8. Review your goals

Homesteading is a huge endeavor. Without goals, it’s going to get overwhelming quickly! Your goals can encompass homestead activities, physical health, business, spirituality, education, and more.

Regardless of what you choose to pursue, reviewing what you hope to accomplish this week, this month, this year, and even ten years down the road will help you achieve a healthy, motivated mindset and stay focused each day.

9. Enjoy the people you love

Relationships are essential for a healthy lifestyle! No matter what your daily life looks like, no one can do it alone. Whether you live on your homestead with a large family or by yourself, take some time each day to connect with the people you love.

Spend time enjoying work or relaxing with your family, call a loved one, or write a letter. Enjoy the people that are in your life and let them know that you care!

10. Don’t forget to rest

For motivated homesteaders, it can be tempting to never stop working. The responsibilities never end, and it’s not hard to find tasks to occupy your time from the moment you wake up until the moment you go to bed.

Still, in order to avoid burnout, it’s essential to take some time to rest. It will look different for everyone, but set aside some time each day to sit on your porch, read a book, play with your kids, or watch the sunset. While it may feel like “wasted time”, taking a break will actually reenergize you to be able to focus well and have strength and motivation to keep working on your goals day after day.