Your health is extremely important! Just in case you need the reminder…
The healthier you are on a daily basis the better your mental health will be and the more positive you will feel. Unfortunately, there always seems to be a time in our lives where we let our health slip, but we must work hard to get back on track again. Think about what might happen if you don’t… let it sink in.
Luckily, when it comes to improving our health there are many ways in which we can do so.
An easily slow pitch down the middle is, look at how much water you are drinking (and drink more), do you get enough sleep (probably sleep more), are you exercising enough (exercise more), or have you started a bad habit like smoking or drinking soda… stop! Essentially there are many ways in which we can improve our health, right now, today.
Below we have put together eight different things to consider when looking to improve your health.
Drinking Enough Water
Water is extremely important for your health, which is why you must aim to consume the daily recommended amount. When you think about how much water you drink daily, do you know how much? Not many people do but when they pay attention, they realize that they don’t consume enough. Around 2-3 liters of water should be consumed daily, and up to 4-5 liters for people working out.
To help keep track of your consumption, it’s recommended you track how much you drink on an app on your phone. We love the app Waterlogged!
Another way to improve your water consumption is to fill up a 2-liter bottle of water and try to finish half of it by the time you leave for work. By having it in a bottle you can know straight away how much water you have consumed that day.
Get Enough Sleep
Sleep is important not only for your mental health but it will also benefit your physical health (and make you burn fat like a furnace).
If you don’t get enough sleep your mind will not be working at it’s full ability (even if you think you are), and you will struggle to concentrate as well.
If you lack sleep and struggle to concentrate this could start to affect your personal life as well as your work life. If you get less than 7 hours of sleep each and every night, start by downloading a sleep tracking app. Tracking is the gateway to improvement, and will show you how much sleep you really are getting. Adding sleep will literally improve ALL aspects of your life!
If you find yourself struggling to sleep, you are not alone. There are many small tricks that you can do to help improve your sleep. These include not using you phone (or other devices) an hour before bed, eating high quality food, getting into a sleep routine where you sleep and wake at the same times every night/morning, and not eating 2 hours before bed.
Exercise
Another area within your life to concentrate on (maybe the best thing) is the amount of exercise you get.
Try and aim to fit in three to five sessions a week of whatever activity you like doing.
In fact, at the start, it doesn’t matter what exercise you do as long as it’s raising your heart rate and getting you active.
If you like the idea of a small team sport then why not try pickleball – you can find the best pickleball paddle for beginners here? I played a TON of pickleball growing up and it’s a fantastic exercise! But, if you’re not into playing against anyone… running or cycling could be a good option. Just make sure if you choose a monostructral training activity (like running or cycling) that you train in varied settings. Go trail running, or mountain biking. This will give you a much more effective stimulus than just pounding the pavement everyday. Lastly, high intensity training is a great way of getting fit very fast, and will improve all of the above mentioned activities as well.
Looking After Your Diet
What you eat can have a big effect on how you feel daily (and look physically). If you over-consume junk food, you can find yourself struggling to sleep as well, feeling lethargic and it can cause you to put on tons of body fat. Not only that, but eating badly can cause your skin condition to deteriorate and for your body to not feel great.
On a daily basis try and improve your diet and consume a wide variety of Organic proteins, fats, and 5 pieces of fruit and vegetables a day. By doing so your health will benefit hugely. And how you FEEL will benefit hugely! And how you look will benefit hugely! When trying to improve your eating, consider hiring a qualified nutritionist to guide you. These are things we should be taught EVERY year in school, but sadly are not. So don’t feel bad about hiring a professional.
Reduce Your Alcohol Consumption
Everything can be enjoyed if it’s done in moderation, and this includes drinking alcohol too. If you find yourself more than one drink a couple nights a week, you can cause all kinds of ill effects on your body, mind, and sleep.
The more you drink on a regular bases, the more likely you’ll run into alcohol related issues. Instead of giving up alcohol altogether, try and reduce your intake. It’s ok to have a glass (or two) of wine on a Friday night or during the weekend but try not to drink as much between Monday and Friday.
If you find yourself relying on it too much then it may be worth giving it up altogether.
Look After Your Mental Wellbeing
Your mental well-being is just as important as your physical well-being.
With more and more people struggling with mental health issues, it’s more important than ever to consider your mental health state and to look after it. Always put your mental health first and remember that all that we’ve talked about above contributes to solid mental health.
Make sure you take time out each week to focus on yourself and look after your mental health. The smallest of changes can help, like getting out and exercising or going out for a walk in the fresh air. Or, why not try out a new sport like something we’ve talked about…
Give Up Smoking and/o Soda
Smoking and soda are things that destroy many people’s health, but once given them up you will feel so much better. By quitting smoking and/or soda you will not only help your heart’s health, but you will also reduce the chances of you developing cancer (and diabetes).
If you are serious about your heath, remember you might struggle to stop instantly. Take your time and slowly reduce the amount you consume. Some days it will be hard, as an addiction is hard to break, but you can do it. Make sure you keep a diary of the days you have not smoked or had soda, as this can help motivate you and show you that you are doing a good job.
Cut down on Sugar
We touched on improving your diet above, and one aspect that you should certainly consider cutting down on is the amount of sugar you consume. Sugar can be classified as the “most unhealthy” of foods. The more you consume the higher your chances of developing type 2 diabetes, which can lead to all kind of other diseases.
There are many apps that you can use to track what you are eating daily. These food apps will also tell you of any nutritional areas that you should work on. For example, you may not be eating enough protein or be low in Omega-3 fatty acids. Or you could be low in a vitamin or mineral, which you could easily improve through tracking.
Overall, there are many aspects in your life that you can improve when looking to improve your health. Instead of concentrating on many at the same time and struggling. Try and make a change to one or two of the points above, get into a routine, and then work on another.
It’s never too late to make a change and work on your health. The sooner you start the better you will feel in the long run.
What tips do you think should be added to the list above that will help with improving someone’s health? Have you tried to make a change to any of the top eight? If so, which one did you decide and why? Let us know in the comment box below.
