No-Scroll November
Hey y'all! Every November people grow mustaches or quit drinking for a month, so I figured, why not quit mindless scrolling? Not cold turkey, though. That never sticks for me. Instead, for 30 days, the apps that eat your day cost something: a few pushups, squats or situps per minute.
I made an app for this after getting tired of filming myself doing pushups at a gas station for one of those camera apps lol, so I'm biased. But you can do this challenge with or without it.
The rules
- Pick one to three apps. The ones your screen time report says eat your day. Not everything, or you'll quit by day four.
- Set a price. One pushup for one minute is a good start. If pushups are rough, squats count. So do situps, pull-ups, or whatever you actually do.
- Earn it before you open it. No reps, no scroll. Messages, maps and work apps stay free.
- Log your reps honestly. Nobody's checking. The only person you'd be fooling is you.
- Keep the streak. Do at least one set every day of November.
A week-by-week plan
| Week | What changes |
|---|---|
| Nov 1–7 | Block just your worst app. Notice when you reach for it and what you were doing right before. |
| Nov 8–14 | Add a second app, or make each rep worth a little less time. |
| Nov 15–21 | No phone for the first 30 minutes of the day. Do your first set before you check anything. |
| Nov 22–30 | Keep whatever's working. Count up how many pushups November cost you, and how much time it gave you back. |
Doing it with HonorFit
HonorFit locks the apps you pick until you log reps on a wheel. By default one pushup is worth one minute, and the time only counts down while a blocked app is actually open. It keeps your day streak, and the free version banks at most 20 minutes at a time, so one big set can't buy a whole evening of scrolling. No camera, no account, and nothing leaves your phone.
Not a pushups person? You can swap in your own exercises, like yoga or walking the dog, or go low-impact.
Doing it without an app
Totally doable. Set a daily limit for the apps in your phone's Screen Time or Digital Wellbeing settings, keep a sticky note with today's reps on the fridge, and only tap “ignore limit” after you've done a set. It's more honor system than mine, but it works if you stick to it.
HonorFit Blocker is a free pushup app blocker for iPhone and Android, made for challenges like this one. It's not for everyone, but maybe it's for you!
FAQ
When is No-Scroll November?
November 1 to November 30. You can start late, too. Just run it for the rest of the month.
Do I need an app to do it?
No. You can do it with a notebook and Screen Time limits. An exercise app blocker like HonorFit just makes it automatic: the apps lock themselves, and you unlock them by logging reps.
What if I miss a day?
Start again the next morning. The point is spending less of November scrolling, not a perfect record.
Won't I just cheat?
Maybe! Here's how the honor system has gone for me, and what to do if you know you'd fudge it.