This surprising habit might rival your diet for longevity

What do you like to do for fun? ‘Ahhhhh, uhhhhh ….’ Soon, you find yourself blubbering about the joy of folding clothes or recalling collecting rocks 🪨 as a child.

A recent survey featured in Upworthy found that nearly 15% of US adults do not have a hobby. 🙅

Hobbies are genuinely useful. “The most successful people fiercely protect their seemingly useless hobbies,” says Sandeep Swadia, who goes by the “MIT Monk” on YouTube (in that he is an MIT graduate and trained as a monk), in Upworthy.

But finding one – or picking a new one – can feel like a shot in the dark 🎯 , and experts like Swadia suggest a different approach…

Choose a hobby that fills in the gaps in your life.

Even better? Choose one that rounds out your healthy longevity lifestyle. Let’s learn how.

A hobby is an activity that you do for leisure, relaxation, personal fulfillment, or enjoyment in your free time — whether it’s gardening, playing music, puzzling, swimming, crocheting, pickleball, or collecting things.

Hobbies have a few central principles: they are routine, often unpaid 💵 (at least not at the start), and done outside of work and other responsibilities. They are also a mindset shift, in that they are things you ‘get to do,’ not something you feel forced to do.

Swadia calls hobbies the “best defense against brainrot.”

Take birdwatchers 🐦️, who show younger brains and lower risks of cognitive decline, while daily gardening may reduce dementia risk by 36%. 

Hobbies have also been linked to:

For comparison, healthy diets are often linked with a 15% to 25% lower risk of all-cause mortality. 

Part of the benefit might simply arise from positivity.

Having a positive outlook on life influences healthy behaviors that can reduce cortisol, stabilize mood, and boost psychological resilience, which can reduce inflammation. Hobbies also create a deeper sense of connection, which shows similar benefits. 🤝

It tracks that people in some of the happiest countries would also participate in hobbies. Research published in Social Science & Medicine found extremely high hobby participation rates in Nordic countries — over 97%!

Finland and Denmark consistently rank among the world’s happiest countries on global surveys. 🌍 Hobbies like walking, biking, gardening, and crafting are built into their daily lives. This activity-rich lifestyle also supports national cardiovascular health, with separate studies reporting lower rates of dying from cardiovascular disease in Nordic countries. 🚲

Hobbies ultimately count on joy, repetition, movement, mental stimulation, and connection to reinforce health over and over again.

Read next: Why is Copenhagen the happiest city?

Swadia suggests thinking of hobbies as tools for filling in areas of your life that are lacking, using the VIBE framework — vitality, inquiry, belonging, and expression — as a guide. They can also help you identify and fill in gaps in health.

❤ Vitality — For those of you who are always “running on empty,” do something to get your heart pumping, the MIT Monk suggests. Group fitness classes, swimming, and biking can build endurance and protect heart and brain health.

🎻 Inquiry — Learning a language or a musical instrument pushes your brain into new territory, which can help it stay adaptable, build neurons, and reduce the risk of cognitive decline.

📖 Belonging — Book clubs, volunteering, choirs, and classes bring people together, helping reduce loneliness, strengthen a sense of purpose, and lift mood.

🎨 Expression — Painting, photography, writing, and cooking get ideas out of your head and into the world, Swadia explains. This kind of creation can build confidence, self-trust, emotional resilience, and connection.

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A hobby doesn’t automatically support health or longevity. Like anything, it can be done in excess, or it can turn into another anxiety. To reap the benefits, keep it consistent, as research shows that regular participation is the key, and make sure you’re having fun.

Habits stick when we enjoy them. 

Psychologists also recommend trying a new hobby if you’re losing interest or changing your mindset. And be flexible, as Swadia recommends. Most hobbies fit multiple VIBE categories.

Hobbies can be a valuable, often overlooked way to support healthier aging and bring more joy and opportunities into your life. ☺ The VIBE can help you identify which kind might fill your biggest health gap, offering a fresh perspective on activities that are sometimes dismissed as ‘useless.’

“Our 24/7 culture tells us hobbies are selfish,” Swadia says. “Nothing could be further from the truth.” 

❓ What hobby are you going to try today?

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