The Surprising Hobby Demi Lovato Turns To When She Wants To Disconnect

For the latest episode of The Thrive Global Podcast with iHeartRadio, Arianna Huffington sits down with Grammy-nominated, singer/songwriter and activist Demi Lovato. The two have a wide-ranging conversation on everything from life in the spotlight and social media to mental illness and religion.

“When I'm bored, what do I do? I reach for my phone instead of taking in the atmosphere and the sights around me,” Lovato said. “There's some sort of validation that you get when you check your phone, as well as checking social media. So yeah, it's definitely I think causing a problem with people and how present they are in the world around them.”

So how has Lovato trained herself to put down the phone? She picks up her knitting needles.

“I've made it a point recently to start knitting, and so instead of reaching for my phone, I'll actually knit.”

The 24-year old showed off her crafting skills on Instagram this summer while on a plane.

Huffington noted that activities like knitting allow your brain to rest, your mind to wander and your thoughts to roam. She added that while reading a new biography of Leonardo da Vinci, she’d been thinking about how people in da Vinci’s time seemed to have a different relationship with time.

hey really had time to let their minds wander and be curious about things, and being bored is almost like part of it,” Huffington said. “And right now, we have so much information, data, stuff coming at us, giving yourself that little time not to be at the other end of data and information is kind of such a little holiday….So you're having a knitting holiday. I love that.”

When she’s not knitting or recording new music, Lovato hits the gym.

“I like to try mixed martial arts, and so I do that several days a week, and I also will do strength and conditioning, so I'll lift weights and do cardio. So, I do a bunch of everything,” Lovato said. “I'm not thinking about my work or what's going on in my personal life. I'm just there to train and it really gets me outside of myself. It helps a lot.”

And when it comes to Arianna Huffington’s favorite topic? Lovato said she gets a full 8 hours of sleep.

“Sleep is definitely kind of an escape, when you use it in a healthy way,” Lovato said. “I get enough sleep every night, and I make sure that I also work out every day, and that's something that is very therapeutic for me as well.”

To hear the full conversation, click here.

You can also listen to the Thrive Global podcast internationally for free on iTunes and Stitcher.