I get it, we are all striving to have that healthy lifestyle. The one where we feel incredible, look good, and are generally living our best lives. It isn’t easy to achieve, and many of us can fall off the wagon quickly.
The great thing about your general health (that most people don’t understand) is that taking care of it overall, means slip ups like bad meals or neglecting your exercise regime can easily be rectified.
Drink plenty of water
This is one of the most basic principles of taking care of your general health, so simple, that in fact it can often be overlooked. But this would be a HUGE mistake.
Water is nature’s natural detox, and while it may be bland and unimaginative to drink, it is incredibly good for you!
The recommended allowance is to drink over two litres of water a day. This can seem quite a lot but actually, over the course of the day it is easier than you would think. And should be an absolute minimum, with a much better amount being .5 to .75 ounces per pound of lean body weight.
Water can help with things like skin tone, energy levels, and so much more. It can help you to have a better quality of sleep at night and would you believe it could even help with moods (#truth #mindblowing).
Most people tend to start with this, and develop the habit of keeping a water bottle close by so that they can sip and drink often. It serves as a good reminder to keep drinking that water.
You can also checkout apps like Waterlogged that will remind you to keep up with your water drinking goals throughout the day.
Eat a healthy and balanced diet
Another basic thing to do (well, it should be basic), and actually one of the most effective is eating a balanced diet.
This isn’t about any extreme diets. There is no point in trying to cut certain food groups out or starve yourself, as it may give you some short term results in terms of weight loss, it’s usually not sustainable.
The same can be said for using fasts and fad diets, while they work really well initially, it’s what you follow them up with that makes the difference. And you need to avoid going back to old habits, as then the good work will be lost.
A balanced diet is exactly what it says, eating all of the food groups and having certain things in moderation. Fat is an important part of your diet, and good fats can be obtained from a variety of different foods. The one thing you could do without is sugar! Fruits and other food ingredients have natural sugars in them, so an allowance is needed for these foods, but they should still be eaten only in moderation.
If you are struggling to figure out what a balanced diet there is, we can give you plenty of guidance.
It is all about the heart health
General health isn’t always about changing your behaviors, it is also about taking care of you on the inside, and one of the most important organs of your body is your heart.
A healthy heart can be ensured in many different ways, including the type of food you eat and the exercise that you do. But, you also need to think about small changes you can make such as monitoring your blood pressure. You can read here about some of the things you can do to monitor it and ensure a healthy future.
The more we take care of our heart, the more it will take care of us.
Do plenty of exercise
Exercise is one of the most important aspects of your general health, and also it one of the things that people struggle with the most.
Exercise, at the beginning of your journey, isn’t a pleasant experience (for most). If you are unfit then chances are starting to exercise is not going to appeal to you. You might feel like you are in pain, out of breath and/or struggling in general, but it is all about breaking through that barrier.
It is also about perseverance. Start small. Anyone who hasn’t exercised for some time should really think about small and actionable steps to built up fitness and stamina. Whether that is a brisk walk, a swimming session or choosing to be active in a program like the Get Better Project everyday, it can make the world of difference to how you feel.
However, as mentioned earlier, perseverance is the key to working through the exhaustive feelings to get to the point where you can feel the enjoyment exercise can bring and the endorphins it can produce. Exercise is also linked to mindset and how we feel generally, so it is never going to be a bad hobby to take up.
I hope that this has helped you when it comes to being on top of your game with your general health.
If you have any questions please ask!
