Give Your Resolutions Half a Chance
The Best Time of the Month to Start Something New
Summary: Start New Habits in Line with Your Cycle
✅ January 1st is an arbitrary date. Your hormones don't care about the calendar, and if you ignore them when launching a new habit, you're making it harder than it needs to be.
✅ Days 6-14 (follicular phase) are your biological green light. Rising estrogen creates faster approach responses to positive stimuli, better learning conditions, and higher motivation—ideal for starting something new.
✅ Tiny habits beat willpower every time. Two minutes is enough. Anchor it to something you already do, focus on identity over outcomes, and build from there.
✅ Phase tells you when. Mutu tells you what. Track your optimal windows with Phase, then use Mutu to strengthen your pelvic floor. Phase users get 15% off with code PHASE15.
80% of New Year's resolutions fail by February, and 43% of people quit by the end of January. Not because you lack discipline. Because you started at the wrong time.
There is an often overlooked reason for this. The dopamine reward system is sensitive to circulating gonadal steroid hormones. That's the system that controls motivation, habit formation, and whether a behavior feels rewarding enough to repeat. And for women, it fluctuates dramatically across the menstrual cycle.
When you try to launch a habit during your luteal or menstrual phase - when progesterone is high or both hormones have crashed - you're fighting your own neurochemistry. This isn’t because you're weak, but because the system that makes habits stick isn't fully online.
So here’s an idea. Stop starting things on January 1st. Start them instead when your brain is ready.
Your Hormones Control the Habit System
Research shows that motivation shifts through the menstrual cycle along with our shifting hormones.
During the follicular phase, rising estrogen influence dopamine levels, promoting motivation and reward sensitivity. This isn't subtle. Women in the late follicular phase exhibited the shortest response times for approaching positive stimuli - meaning your brain is literally faster at moving toward rewards during this window.
Working memory performance appears superior at times of high estradiol levels, which matters because forming a new habit requires focus, planning, and the cognitive bandwidth to override old patterns.
Then there's the luteal phase. Women in the mid-luteal phase avoided negative stimuli more quickly, with progesterone levels positively predicting harm-avoidance behavior. Translation: your brain shifts from approach mode (let's try this!) to protect mode (let's not mess this up). That's useful for risk assessment. Terrible for launching new behaviors.
This explains why resolutions that start mid-luteal feel like dragging a boulder uphill. Your neurochemistry isn't designed for approach behaviors during that phase.
The Four Phases (and When to Use Them)
Menstrual Phase (Days 1-5): Reflect, Don't Launch
Estrogen and progesterone are both low. Energy dips. Self-criticism spikes.
This is not the time to start. But it's perfect for reflection: What do you actually want? What kind of person do you want to become? Get clear on the *why* before your follicular phase arrives.
Follicular Phase (Days 6-14): Your Launchpad
This is it. Many women experience greater confidence, motivation, and optimism during this phase, making it a great time for planning and taking on new projects.
Plus, your brain is primed to learn. Dopamine sensitivity increases, so rewards feel more rewarding which is critical for the habit loop. Start your two-minute version now, and momentum will carry you through the harder phases later.
Ovulatory Phase (Days 14-16): Amplify
Estrogen peaks and testosterone increases slightly during ovulation, often leading to feelings of high energy, confidence, and an increased desire to socialize - this is when many women feel their best.
Use this confidence to lock in your habit:
- Tell someone about it
- Schedule it publicly
- Join a community or program
Accountability works best when you're least afraid of judgment and that is now.
Luteal Phase (Days 17-28): Maintain, Don't Expand
Progesterone rises. Motivation naturally decreases. Self-criticism returns.
Don't try to launch anything new. Just keep showing up to what you've already started—even if it's the tiniest version. Five minutes instead of twenty. One rep instead of ten. The goal is consistency, not intensity.
This phase is excellent for tracking and refining. What's working? What's creating friction? Use your detail-oriented brain to improve the system, not to judge yourself for not feeling excited about it.
How to Pick a Habit That Actually Sticks
Most people choose habits that sound impressive. "Work out five times a week." "Meditate for 30 minutes daily."
These aren't habits. They're aspirations. And aspirations require constant motivation, which (as we've just established) you don't have every day.
Start With Identity, Not Outcomes
Don't ask: "What do I want to achieve?"
Ask: "Who do I want to become?"
Then choose a habit that casts a vote for that identity.
- ❌ "I want to lose weight" → "Go to the gym 5x/week"
- ✅ "I'm someone who moves daily" → "Put on workout clothes after coffee"
The second version ties success to behavior you control, not outcomes you don't. And it builds the identity first, which is far more resilient than outcome-based motivation.
2. Make It Two Minutes (Or Less)
Your habit should be so small you can't say no—even on a low-energy day.
- Instead of "work out for an hour" → "Put on workout clothes"
- Instead of "meditate for 20 minutes" → "Take three deep breaths"
- Instead of "drink 8 glasses of water" → "Drink one glass when I wake up"
Once you've started, momentum often carries you further. But the key is making the start *so easy* that even progesterone brain can do it.
3. Anchor It to Something You Already Do
This is called habit stacking. The formula:
"After I [existing habit], I will [new habit]."
Examples:
- "After I make my morning coffee, I'll do a 5-minute stretch"
- "After I brush my teeth, I'll do three pelvic floor pulses"
- "After I close my laptop, I'll write one sentence in my journal"
By linking your new habit to something automatic, you remove the need to remember or decide. It just becomes part of the routine.
Movement: The Habit That Unlocks Everything Else
If you're wondering where to start, start with movement.
Movement affects sleep, mood, energy, focus, stress resilience, and confidence. It's also highly scalable - it can be five minutes or fifty, gentle or intense, depending on where you are in your cycle.
This is where Mutu comes in. Mutu offers cycle-aware movement programs built specifically for women's bodies, with a focus on core and pelvic floor health - the foundations for all movement. Whether you're postpartum, perimenopausal, or simply rebuilding trust in your body, Mutu can help make you stronger.
How to Launch Your Movement Habit
Step 1: Wait for your follicular phase
Use Phase to track your cycle and identify when you're entering days 6-14. That's when your body is primed for learning new movement patterns.
Step 2: Make it ridiculously small
Your goal isn't to complete an entire workout. It's to build the identity of "someone who moves."
Examples:
- "Do one Mutu exercise after brushing my teeth"
- "Open the Mutu app and complete a 5-minute session"
- "Put on workout clothes and do three pelvic floor exercises"
Step 3: Track your cycle and adjust intensity
This is the magic. You're not doing the same workout every day. You're adjusting based on what your body needs.
- Follicular/Ovulatory: Try new movements, increase intensity, challenge yourself
- Luteal: Maintain your habit but lower the intensity - restorative yoga, walking, gentle stretching
- Menstrual: Rest if needed, but keep the *identity* alive with something tiny (two-minute stretch, three deep breaths)
This approach prevents burnout and honors your body's rhythms. You're not "giving up" during low-energy phases. You're being strategic.
Bonus: Phase users get 15% off Mutu with code PHASE15. Track your optimal windows with Phase, then use Mutu's cycle-aware programming to build the movement habit that changes everything else. Trial Mutu Now.
You Don't Need Willpower. You Need Timing.
So here's your new system:
1. Don't start on January 1st (unless it's your follicular phase)
2. Use your menstrual phase to reflect on what you truly want
3. Launch your two-minute habit during your follicular phase when biology is on your side
4. Commit publicly during ovulation to amplify accountability
5. Maintain and refine during your luteal phase, adjusting intensity as needed
6. Track your cycle so you can predict when motivation will be high or low
Ready to build new habits in line with your cycle?
Download Phase to track your hormonal windows and know exactly when your brain is primed for behavior change.
Your cycle fluctuates. How you feel during each phase can vary month to month. Track your own patterns, and adjust accordingly
References:
Li D, Zhang L, Wang X. The Effect of Menstrual Cycle Phases on Approach-Avoidance Behaviors in Women: Evidence from Conscious and Unconscious Processes. Brain Sci. 2022 Oct 21;12(10):1417. doi: 10.3390/brainsci12101417. PMID: 36291350; PMCID: PMC9599574.
Golden, C.E.M., et al. (2025). Estrogen modulates reward prediction errors and reinforcement learning. Nature Neuroscience. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-025-02104-z
Dreher, J.C., et al. (2007). Menstrual cycle phase modulates reward-related neural function in women. PNAS, 104(7):2465-70. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0605569104
Hampson, E., & Morley, E.E. (2013). Estradiol concentrations and working memory performance in women of reproductive age. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 38(12):2897-904. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24011502/
Photo byMorgan Sarkissian onUnsplash
