Analog Hobbies to Get the Digital Detox You Need

Last year I took an entire year off of Instagram and it was genuinely one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I probably wouldn’t be engaged if I hadn’t taken that time away. Through that year I discovered something I already knew but had forgotten: analog hobbies are everything.

Analog hobbies have been proven to regulate your nervous system because they reduce stress and encourage relaxation through hands-on, tactile experiences. They take your mind off whatever is pressing and replace it with something sensory and grounding. Analog hobbies are, quite literally, self-care at its finest.

Despite returning to social media, I still do many of these hobbies and have started new ones this year, including gardening! The biggest reason analog hobbies are important is burnout prevention, especially screen burnout. And when you complete something with your hands, the dopamine hit is so much more rewarding than an hour of doom scrolling. Trust me on this one.

The feeling of seeing my zucchini plants rise from the soil this week was genuinely the best feeling. Knowing we’ll have enough to share with our neighbors brought me more joy than the 20 minutes I spent on social media that same day. I nurtured those seeds with good soil, a raised bed, and loads of water. That’s the difference.

Alright, let’s talk about all the analog hobbies worth picking up to reset your brain and calm your nervous system.

Table of Contents

Embroidery or Cross Stitching

This is something I did a lot of when I was younger. My aunt was a cross stitcher and she helped me start my very first project. I still have it and the others we worked on together afterward. I also recently found one of her books while unpacking and cannot wait to go through it and pick this hobby back up. Here are some great starter options for both embroidery and cross stitching. They’re different techniques but both have beautiful results.

Reading

What I love about reading is that it can be both educational and pure escapism. You can read an entire book on herbalism and start making your own dandelion tea, or solve a murder mystery alongside a detective so clever and witty you can’t help but adore her, eczema and all. Books are wonderful and while they can be an expensive hobby, they can also be completely free. Pay your taxes and use your library. Here are a few of my favorites right now.

Yoga

If you’re new here, I’ve been doing yoga for over 20 years and am about to complete my Yoga Teacher Training! I only recently discovered the true depth of yoga through YTT and it’s genuinely shocking how it is not just exercise but a holistic practice that can alleviate real suffering. I am living proof. I was in physical therapy for over 8 months, went back to yoga, and was fixed in one month.

Yoga not only works your body but has been proven to regulate your autonomic nervous system and stress response. I cannot recommend it enough. You’re only getting older and it is never too late to start.

Camping

This hobby puts you in essentially pre-evolutionary conditions and that is exactly the point! Camping is perfect for truly getting off your phone and into the wilderness. It’s a wonderful hobby for families and close friends and when you make the conscious effort to stay off your screens, it naturally opens the door to so many other outdoor hobbies including paddle boarding, fishing, board games, cooking over a fire, and so much more.

This year we’re attempting car camping for the first time and I could not be more excited.

Sewing

One of my absolute favorite hobbies and one I’ve been slowly reclaiming this year. I recently started a Monthly Make series where I share what I’m making each month and so far it is heavily sewing focused. If you’re interested in getting started, I have a full post on Beginner Sewing on a Budget that walks you through everything you need to know without the overwhelm. Fair warning, once you start, it’s really hard to stop.

Crochet or Knitting

Knitting is a guilty pleasure during the fall and winter months and I think it’s because whatever you’re creating is always warm and inevitably ends up wrapped around you while you work on it. I started knitting about four years ago and I am entirely self-taught from YouTube. I highly recommend it. Crocheting is equally lovely. I only know one stitch but I know it very well and used to make scarves when I was younger.

Gardening

My newest and most favorite hobby right now. Gardening has been overwhelmingly wonderful and genuinely therapeutic. It’s work, especially when weeds and blackberry roots are involved, but the reward is totally incomparable. We have three raised beds we are currently babying: one filled with strawberries, one with lettuce and soon sweet peppers, and one with zucchini and hopefully cucumbers. Watching things grow is one of the most quietly joyful experiences I’ve ever had.

Taking a Class

You are never too old to take a class and I am absolute proof of that. I am about to complete my Yoga Teacher Training, for goodness sake! Check your local community center for weekend classes. Ceramics, pottery, painting, sewing, swimming, water aerobics – there is truly something for everyone and it is so much fun to be a student again after years away from a classroom.

Skillshare – Online Class Portal
Masterclass – learn from the best in the industry

Art in General

Pick up a pencil, a paintbrush, or some colored pens and start making art again. We spend hours scrolling through other people’s creativity and somewhere along the way we stopped making our own. Let this be our collective campaign to start again.

If you don’t know where to begin, YouTube is full of free beginner tutorials from incredibly generous artists. Skillshare is another wonderful option if you want more structured learning! I have used both.

Photography

Almost every phone on the market has a camera and they only keep getting better. A friend of mine goes on a walk every weekend and photographs the flowers she finds. Her eye has grown more and more beautiful over the years simply from the practice of showing up and paying attention. There is no better time to start than right now!

Pro Lens Kit for Phone
Shutterfly – Favorite Printing Service

Baking or Cooking

If you have a kitchen you more than likely have everything you need to start. A friend of mine began baking and decorating cookies as a hobby and has since turned it into a genuinely lucrative small business. She loves what she does and it brings her joy whenever she gets a unique order.

Personally, I love like baking but I love cooking so much more. I think it’s all about your own flavor profile and when you make something exceptionally wonderful, you feel pride and success. It’s a wonderful feeling. Some of my favorite recipes are in this post: 10 Perfectly Wonderful Cottagecore Recipes for Your Recipe Box.

Excited for Rebekah Moyer’s Simple Kitchen Magic Cookbook
Mason Cash – the prettiest mixing bowls!
Papier Recipe Journals

Journaling

I have had a journal since I was 7 years old. It was a darling little diary with hearts on it and a tiny gold lock. I used to wear the key on a necklace, as if my most precious secrets might escape. 😄 Since then I go through one to three journals a year. It is another form of therapy for me, the way I process my thoughts and life. Especially when I’m hyperfixating on something I can’t talk about out loud. I always write it out instead.

Papier Journals 😍
Pentel EnerGel RTX Retractable Liquid Gel Pen – The BEST Pens

Candle Making

I took a charming candle making class on my solo Southern road trip a few years ago in Charleston, South Carolina and it was such a wonderful experience. Check your area for local classes and if you can’t find one, it’s also a surprisingly easy hobby to start at home. The magic is in mixing scents and matching them to moods and personalities. I personally love beeswax and soy candles.

Calligraphy or Hand Lettering

Last but absolutely not least: the art of physically writing beautiful words. I love receiving anything in the mail from people I care about. Letters, cards, little notes. I have kept them from relatives and friends going back years and they are some of my most treasured things.

One of my goals this year is to send cards to friends throughout the seasons just for the joy of it. There is something so deeply personal about receiving something the old fashioned way.

There are so many more analog hobbies out there, friends. The world is your oyster and I truly encourage you to step away from your screen and go searching for your whimsy! You might be surprised what you find when you put down your phone and pick up something made for your hands. 💕

The screens will always be there waiting. Plus, your nervous system will thank you later.

I’d love to know your favorite analog hobbies in the comments below. What are you picking up or going back to this season?

xoxo