Viral New Year reset routine is helping people adopt healthier habits

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What if yourNew Year’s resolutioncould fit inside a tote bag?Social media users are trying the “analog bag” trend, replacing phones with offline activities.

The trend is widely credited to TikTok creator Sierra Campbell, who posted about her own analog bag — containing a crossword book, portable watercolor set, Polaroid camera, planner and knitting supplies — and encouraged followers to make their own.

Her video prompted many others to share their own versions, with items like magazines, decks of cards,paints, needlepointand puzzle books.

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“I made a bag of non-digital activities to occupy my hands instead of the phone,” said Campbell, adding that the practice has significantly cut her screen time and filled her life with “creative and communal pursuits that don’t include doom-scrolling.”

“I created the analog bag after learning the only way to change a habit is to replace it with another,�

Example of an analog bag with camera, art supplies, books

Social media users are trying the “analog bag” trend, replacing phones with offline activities like cameras, notebooks and magazines.

The science of healthier habits

Research onhabit formationsupports the idea of the analog bag, according to Dr.Daniel Amen, a California-based psychiatrist and founder of Amen Clinics.

“Your brain is a creature of habit,�“Neurons that fire together wire together, meaning that every time you repeat a behavior, whether it’s good or bad, you strengthen theneural pathwaysthat make it easier to do it again.”

cutting out coffee— you need to have another drink to grab for, not just quit cold turkey.It’s how the pathways in our brains work,” Campbell said.

By substituting adifferent routinethat still provides stimulation and engagement, people can gradually weaken the original habit and build a new automatic response.

Substituting another activity instead of scrolling on your phone can help quell the impulse to reach for it.(iStock)

“Simply stopping a behavior is very challenging,” Amen said.“Replacing one habit with something that is better for your brain is much easier.That’s how lasting change happens, one step at a time.”

Joyful female friends thinking on answer for crossword puzzle

“If alternatives are within arm’s reach, you’re more likely to use them,” a brain doctor said.“Your brain does much better with small, simple actions than big, vague intentions.”(iStock)

Campbell shared her own examples of how to use an analog bag.At a coffee shop with friends, she said, she might pull out acrossword puzzleand ask others to help with answers when the conversation lulls.

Instead of taking dozens of photos on her phone, she uses aninstant camera, which limits shots and encourages more intentional moments.

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In casual outdoor settings, such as a park or winery, she brings a small watercolor set for a quick creative outlet.

“It’s brought so much joy,” Campbell said of the analog bag trend, “seeing how it resonates with so many.”

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