Healthy Habits That Will Change Your Life!

When we think of health or being healthy, what generally comes to mind is the health or state of our bodies.  While we certainly need to practice healthy habits for our bodies, healthy habits don’t stop there.  Our health encompasses much more than our physical being.  Our mind and our spirit, in addition to our physical state, make up who and what we are.

There are some habits that healthy people practice on a daily basis.  Living healthy is about making the right choices.  While none of us are perfect and everyone screws up now and then, you can choose healthy habits as easily as bad ones.

We know for a fact that good health comes from good habits.  Some may argue that genes play a big part in our health and that is true, to some extent, but our choices and habits play just as big a part, if not bigger in our overall health.

Although there is no perfect formula or magic pill and what works for one person might not necessarily work for another, there are some habits that super healthy people practice regularly.  If you can incorporate some or most of these habits into your daily life, you may just find that, overall, your physical, mental and spiritual well being can change for the better.

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Physical Healthy Habits

Exercise

We all know exercising is good for us, but why do some of us avoid it?  It’s a fact that exercise helps improve your physique, strengthen your immune system, boost your energy and improve your mood.  Most people who exercise regularly are motivated by increased feelings of well-being, better sleep and coping with stress.  When I used to personal train, I would tell my clients that exercising is the fountain of youth!  It’s like the magic pill when it comes to our physical and mental well being.

So many ailments could be cured or at least kept under control by hitting the gym or just staying active. It lowers the risk of heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, keeps your weight in check and is a natural anti depressant.  It also makes you better off financially.  When your healthy, you don’t need to go to the doctor as much, you don’t need certain medication and probably won’t need therapy.

Eat Breakfast!

It’s true what the experts say…”Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!”  It doesn’t have to be a big breakfast, but it needs to be something.

Think about it.  If you ate dinner at 6:00 in the evening, slept all night, woke up and started your day, not eating until noon, your body has been on an 18 hour fast.  Naturally, it thinks you may be in starvation mode. So what happens is your body begins to slow the old metabolism down.  It’s conserving calories.  Then you may notice, you start putting on some weight.  You don’t know why, because you only eat one or two meals a day.  Well, skipping breakfast is why.

Not only will it slow metabolism, you will generally feel lethargic, may be prone to headaches or other health issues.

Healthy people always make it a point to start their day with breakfast. period!

Drink Plenty of water!

There are so many benefits to drinking water yet there are so many people that don’t consume near enough fluids each day.  Water is critical to our health and well being because all of our cells and organs require water to function normally.

Here are just a few benefits to drinking water:

• Your digestive system depends on it.  The bowels need water to work properly. Dehydration can lead to digestive problems, constipation, and an overly acidic stomach and can increase the risk of heartburn and stomach ulcers.
• It prevents kidney damage. The kidneys regulate fluid in the body. Insufficient water can lead to kidney stones and other problems.
• Water helps with weight loss.
• It flushes body waste and is essential for the process of sweating and removing urine and feces.
• It promotes skin health & beauty and goes a long way for preventing wrinkles.
• It regulates body temperature and is essential during exercise when you lose water.

Get Enough ZZZZZ’s

Getting enough sleep a night is just as necessary for good health as eating a balanced diet and exercising. MayoClinic.com notes that sleeping less than seven hours or more than nine hours regularly can lead to weight gain and other health risks.

Try getting on some sort of sleep schedule, by going to bed at the same time every night, even on the weekends.  Avoid, caffeine, alcohol and going to bed on a very full stomach.

I’m not going to go into a lot of the do’s and don’ts of sleeping, but there is a lot of info out on the web, if you need help with this.

Get Your Checkups!

Annual checkups are very important habits of healthy people, for obvious reasons.  I know that most of us don’t enjoy going to the doctor, but most insurance companies will pay for one well visit a year.  Blood work, mammograms and physical exams can find or catch a host of problems.  My Mom always says “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!”  It can literally save your life.

Floss Your Teeth!

Flossing gets the stuff that the toothbrush doesn’t.  This simple task, that takes about a minute or two, can prevent periodontal disease, which can lead to inflamed gums and eventually tooth loss.  People with periodontal disease are twice as likely to develope coronary artery disease.  An unhealthy mouth can and will harm the rest of the body.

This simple daily task can save your health and your pocket book.  If you don’t do it, this is definitely one of the most necessary healthy habits to start!

Eat Your Fruits and Veggies

We are what we eat!  I think I learned this in the third grade.  Our bodies need a certain amount of good, quality nutrients, not found in fast food or processed foods.  You may be able to get by for a while not eating your fruits and vegetables, but sooner or later, your body will retaliate.  Your insides depend on vitamins and nutrients only supplied by fruits and veggies.

If you’re feeling bad, I recommend looking at your eating habits before you rush to the doctor looking for a pill.  Sometimes, merely adjusting our diet can have a huge impact on our over all well being.

Just remember…”Garbage in, garbage out!”

Mental/Spiritual Healthy Habits

Express Gratitude

Appreciating little things make us happier. Showing and recognizing how grateful you are for a number of things in your life can actually reduce depression and increase your immunity.  Counting your blessings is so much more healthy that counting your woes.

One of my favorite quotes is from Dave Ramsey’s daughter, Rachel Cruze.  She says, “In a heart filled with gratitude, there is no room for discontent.”  I find that statement to be very true!

So, stop and take time to smell the roses.  Appreciate what you have.  It’s the little things in life that make our lives worth living.

Find Your Purpose in Life

We all need a purpose in life.  It’s a reason to get up in the morning.  When you find your passion in life, you have found your purpose.  It doesn’t have to be just one thing, either.  We can have many things in our lives that get our motors running.

The important thing to remember is in order to find out what our purpose is, we have to try new things and get involved in living.

Like the Nike slogan says…”Just do it” and sometimes that means doing it scared.  Another thing my Mom always use to tell me was “Nothing ventured, nothing gained”.  How true is that!!  If you never try something, you”ll never know if you like it or are good at it!

If you have something you want to do or are passionate about, take steps daily, toward it.  Be open to the possibilities and you’ll definitely find your purpose.

Address Personal Problems

Letting go of resentments can be hard.  I know first hand, it’s tough, especially when you feel you have been wronged.  But, the older I get, I see these festering resentments as unhealthy, unproductive and basically a waste of time and energy.

It may be easier said than done, sometimes, but let it go and move on.  When you live in the past with the grudges, you might miss the great things happening in the present.

Be Giving

I think it’s true that when you are helping others, you take the focus off of yourself.  When you give of yourself, it makes you feel good.  When you are generous with your time and money, it promotes a greater sense of well being, thereby lowering stress, depression and chances of dying early.

Disconnect

I don’t mean from people.  I mean get offline.  Everywhere I go, I see people looking down at their phones.  Not only can this be dangerous, (not watching your surroundings or where you’re going), it keeps you from connecting with actual people.  We sometimes get so busy nurturing online relationships, that we ignore the real ones actually in front of us.

Being online constantly also make us more prone to the comparing game.  Looking at Facebook can be depressing to many.  All we see are our friends and acquaintances highlight reels.  It can be disheartening to some when you think everyone else’s life is better than yours.  Back away and live your life, not someone elses.  Keep your relationships real.

Love Yourself

For some, this may be the hardest thing to do.  It’s easy to love others, but we are, mostly, our own worst critic.  We see all of our flaws and we pick apart ourselves to the extent that we feel undeserving of self love.  This is not healthy or beneficial in any way.

My Mom use to tell me, when I was a kid, “If you don’t love yourself, no one else will, either”.  I took that to heart.  When you love yourself, you have a higher expectation of how you should be treated by others.  When you care enough about yourself, (and I’m not talking about selfishness) you will not allow others to treat you as a door mat.

If you don’t love yourself today, chances are that you won’t love yourself tomorrow…or 10 years from now.

This is something we can choose to do, just like choosing to be angry or mad.  When you love yourself, your life will get better, relationally, socially, financially and even health wise.  You take better care of yourself when you choose to love yourself.

Let Go of Perfectionism

Perfection is a myth. It doesn’t exist and yet so many of us strive for it day in and day out. We worry about being perfect in our jobs, how we look to others, our relationships and life in general, that we totally stress ourselves out.

There’s no arguing that trying to be perfect can wreak havoc on our bodies. Trying to achieve  the unachievable. Worrying about what others think of us. Trying to control something for which we have no control (life). It results in anxiety, headaches, tension and ultimately, depression.

You don’t have to be good at everything.  There’s no such thing as being perfect.  Perfectionism will paralyze you, if you let it.  It can also lead to a lack of self worth.  When you try something and fail at it, do you give up and beat yourself up?  No…you shouldn’t.  There’s nothing wrong with striving for excellence or success.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’ve always believed that a job worth doing is a job worth doing right.  But there are so many other areas of our lives that we strive to be perfect in.  This is only an image that we try to create for others to see.  And please, don’t try keeping up with the Joneses.  They are no where near perfect…and theyre broke!

Strive for excellence, not perfection.  There is a big difference!  Do your best at life but accept your imperfections and give yourself permission to be human.

Hang Out With Happy People

Happiness is contagious! Surround yourself with other people who are happy and supportive.  It will build your self-confidence, boost your creativity and you’ll have more fun in general. On the other end of the spectrum, hanging out with negative people means you’re just another member of their pity party — and that’s exhausting and not much fun.  Happy people tend to exhibit gratitude, generosity and positivity.  Instead of dwelling on how bad a situation is, they look for solutions to improve the bad situation.

My Dad would always say, “Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.”  This pertains to a spectrum of things.  He was saying it to me and my brothers, so we wouldn’t get mixed up in the wrong crowd, but it also pertains to this subject as well.  Negative people bring you down.  Happy people lift you up.  Happiness is healthy. Period.

Simple, yet Effective!

So, here you have it!  14 habits that I do my best to implement myself and have observed in others that are physically and mentally healthy and happy.  They are basic principles, but when adhered to, will produce drastic improvements and changes in your health and happiness, for the better.

Evaluate your daily habits and start trying to improve them one at a time!  By incorporating some or all of these habits into your daily life, you will create a stronger, healthier and  happier you.

Remember…

Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.
-Mahatma Ghandi

What are some healthy habits that you have started doing to improve your health and well being?  I’d love to hear from you!

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