So what does someone need to do to turn things around if improved health their goal? First of all, stop putting off making good choices until some mystical time in the future. Jump in! You can start making healthier choices the next time you are faced with a choice.
This is your life, it is not a contest with a start and end time. Being healthier messes with your lifestyle, so it is best to make slow easy changes and build on your successes. Here are twenty ways to get in shape, feel better and gain energy.
1. Be conscious of your eating and choose to eat a fruit or vegetable with every meal.
2. When picking fruits and vegetables, choose a variety of colors to receive the most benefit from their various nutrients. “Two colors, five a day” is the motto.
3. Reduce mindless eating and promote positive snacking. Snack with a purpose by adding nutrition to your current choices.
4. Enjoy indulgences in moderation and do not feel guilty for doing something you perceive as unhealthy once in a while.
5. Move more, yea-you know that already. But make a commitment to do it regularly in a way you can live with. Build activity into your day.
6. Drink water every day, throughout the day.
7. Develop a plan to engage in some form of weight bearing exercise. This is important for bone health, muscle growth and to boost your metabolism.
8. Get your age appropriate preventative screenings annually.
9. Get your annual check-up and lab work.
10. Take a good vitamin and mineral supplement daily.
11. Force yourself to just BE sometimes. Relax and take personal time daily, even if it is only 10 or 15 minutes.
12. Build a supportive network of friends in your area. Know your neighbors and practice random acts of kindness.
13. Engage in an activity that will allow you to express yourself and your talents.
14. Learn the best ways for you to manage life’s stressors before you are in the grips of a panic.
15. Team up with someone who shares your goals and who will encourage you.
16. Reduce caffeine consumption in the afternoon and evenings. It can interfere with your body’s ability to sleep soundly.
17. Develop an evening routine to help you wind down for sleep. Turn lights low, reduce stimulus around you and control your environment.
18. Regularly turn your attentions to the needs of others and help if you are able. Not your routine family stuff, but those outside your family that are in your sphere of influence.
19. Declutter your space. This leaves you more time to relax when you are not spending time caring for all your stuff.
20. Prune your schedule. Take a hard look at what fills your time and causes you to burn the candle at both ends. What is really necessary and what can be removed.
Whatever you do to improve your overall health is good. What you must decide is what is important enough to you. Being healthy requires you to be proactive about your wellness.
Being healthy is a process. Once you have it, you will have to work to maintain it. Make your lifestyle enjoyable and you will get the most for your efforts. Start having fun again!
Be smart about your choices and enjoy the journey to total health. After all, if you hate every minute of living healthy, why bother. What is the point of living a long life if you are miserable every day? Somewhere along the path is compromise you can live with.
Open book test: On the PATH OF LIFE you can:
A. Follow rigid standards set by “Professionals.”
B. Find a compromise that meets your needs.
C. Do nothing and be comfortable with things as they are.
(Hint… Choose B.) A few rare people choose A. Many choose C, but I encourage you to take a look at B. This option will help you meet your wellness goals and have fun along the way. That is what life is about, finding that balance of health and enjoyment of the process.
I urge you to find that spark of enjoyment and build healthy options around that. Intentional choice making will steer your efforts in the right direction. You don’t have to get it all right to see the benefits from making better choices.
If all-or-nothing is your problem, then accepting some moderation will help you fight the urge to chuck it all and go back to the comfort zone. Being heal-thy amounts to heal-thy-self.
You can pay a little now or pay a lot later. Studies show that the old adage is true: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Best wishes on your personal journey.
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