How Brain Health Determines Your Ability to Build Healthy Habits

January 8th, 2026

With the turn of the New Year, there’s lots of content circulating the internet about effective habit formation and hacks for ushering in the best version of ourselves. I genuinely enjoy this content, and agree with many of its propositions. But here’s my hot take on sustainable habit formation: your body is the vehicle for change. Optimize your body, and the rest will follow.

Let me explain:
Good brain & nervous system health make you more disciplined, more effective at building habits, and more likely to keep them up long-term.

We forget that the brain is a physical organ in the body. And how healthy your brain is determines how well you can command your life and implement change. Mindset hacks and frameworks are great, but if your brain is inflamed, or your pre-frontal cortex is struggling, then forming any new habit can feel like pushing a boulder up a mountain.

Here’s why:

Your brain has a ‘control center’ that helps you run your life. 

This internal management system—also known as your brain’s executive functioning—is governed by the pre-frontal cortex, and is responsible for your ability to make a plan, organize yourself, take action, concentrate, and control impulses. Think of it as your brain’s own CEO and executive leadership team. If your pre-frontal cortex is weakened or inflamed, all of these executive functioning skills can go out the window.

The problem is, our pre-frontal cortex is under constant assault by modern life. Constant stimulation, disrupted sleep, blood sugar swings, gut inflammation, food sensitivities, and nutrient depletion all tax the pre-frontal cortex, leading to widespread executive functioning issues. As a result, more than ever, we’re struggling with our ability to think clearly, take action, focus, stick to a plan, and resist sources of cheap dopamine that we know are bad for us and keep us stuck. We can no longer do hard things that require effort, time, patience, and dedication the way we used to.

Poor executive functioning is commonly associated with conditions like ADHD, depression, anxiety, and other mental health disorders. But even those of us without these conditions are struggling with poor executive function. Executive dysfunction has become a widespread phenomenon.

Beyond the constant stimulation and dopamine dysregulation of daily life, addressing key physiological stressors that tax the pre-frontal cortex can do wonders for strengthening executive function.

I was amazed at how my own executive functioning skills and focus transformed dramatically when I uncovered hidden food sensitivities, optimized my gut microbiome, repleted key brain nutrients, and recalibrated my circadian rhythm. Experiencing this shift made me realize that there’s so much more to habit formation and execution than just ‘discipline’.

When you support the body and brain, change stops feeling like force and starts feeling possible. 

If you want to optimize your brain health and make 2026 the year that you finally have the capacity for change, book a free consultation to learn how nutritional therapy and gut microbiome rehabilitation can help.

And if you want to hear a Part 2 on habit formation and optimization, shoot me an email and let me know!