Top Ten Tips For Living A Healthy Lifestyle

by | Jul 4, 2011 | General Health, Movement, Nutrition | 2 comments

It's only fair to share…

Guest Contributor Mark Corner

I was recently asked to write my top 10 tips for living a healthy lifestyle. So here they are.

Meditate

This may be something that people may feel is off the beaten track a bit, as far as living a healthy lifestyle is concerned. However, there is more to it than you think, for instance, did you know that people who meditate have better balanced hormones, which regulate appetite, etc. And as a result, have more effective workout benefits than those who don’t. The reason for this is people who meditate tend to be far more grounded, less stressed and more focused. So they are far more likely to stick to an exercise regime as well as eating correctly.

Processed food

Swap processed food, for more wholesome food. There are a lot of processed foods on the market, particularly in the meal for one sector. These types of all in one handy foods, generally lack overall nutrition and can be high in sugar, as well as unhealthy fats. Stay as near to what nature intended you to eat and not only will you feel better, you will eat far less, that is one of the downsides of eating so-called handy foods you tend to be hungry a lot more. So you eat more of them with the probability of gaining weight.

Sugar

Limit the amount of sugar that you eat, which is common in things like cakes and biscuits. The main reason for doing this is it can mount up as excess calories and has no real nutritional value.

Furthermore, you will cut down your chances of contracting diabetes and other problems later in life. It will also stop you from getting body inflammation, which can cause problems with your immune system. So you will get more viruses,’ colds, etc.

Exercise

This is something that we all should do; however, life can tend to get in the way sometimes. So here are a couple of easy steps, if you are struggling with this particular element of living a healthy lifestyle.

Listen to music while you exercise. This certainly helps me when I’ve been doing exercise, it can help you to stay motivated and work out harder.

There are lots of things you can do without even realising you are exercising, for instance, did you know that dusting, cleaning and moving laundry can burn up to 400 calories per hour.

This is just one thing that you could be doing, which will help you to burn up excess calories. All that matters is that you are moving. As opposed to living a sedentary lifestyle.

Be around healthy people

It’s been said the people whom we associate with most can pass their habits onto us, this may not be the case always, but it is something worth bearing in mind. So find someone to support you from a health point of view, it’s possible that, you will get a lot further. If you are around people that are trying to achieve the same objective, you then you can swap food ideas, as well as exercising together, which will introduce a bit of competitive spirit for you both.

Nature

Commune with nature as much as possible, as not only will this help your overall well being but you are far less likely to suffer from depression or anxiety. There is nothing wrong with being indoors for a certain amount of time. However, we can tend to overdo it somewhat. It has been reported that patients in hospitals recover far quicker when they could see outside through a window compared to those who didn’t. There is also evidence to support that people who exercise outside can reap more benefits compared to those who exercise in doors all the time.

Habits

If you are new to this type of healthy lifestyle, you may find it a bit hard to keep on track mainly because you have been practising some bad habits for quite some time now. It’s best if you tackle bad habits, one at a time, the reason a lot of us tend to fail to keep our healthy lifestyles going is we don’t give them enough time to take root. Aim for a period of between 30 and 60 days.

Headspace

Sometimes we can spend a lot of time in our own heads, ruminating over things we should or shouldn’t be doing. This can be quite crippling at times, especially if you’re trying to adopt, or even keep a different lifestyle.  So be kind to yourself.

And listen to the voice of reason. If you are going to start an exercise regime or change the way you eat then you are going to need to quieten down your inner voice because more than likely it will take you down the wrong path at times. It will take some practice, but if you find you are talking to yourself in a negative manner it’s good practice to get into the habit of ignoring what you are saying to yourself.

If you are giving yourself positive reinforcement, then that is fine.

Make small changes

Making small changes over a longer period of time is the best way to go. Don’t forget that it can take time adjusting from one lifestyle change to another.

If you are just starting out exercising, try working out for about five minutes.  Overtime slowly increase it to 10 minutes, and so on. The same goes for eating; make gradual changes to what you are eating, that way it becomes more of a lifestyle change and is more sustainable.

Have treats and rewards

There is nothing wrong with having the occasional treat. Try to make it is an occasional one though and you are far more likely to maintain being healthy. There are plenty of ways to get rewards in life. It’s just a matter of seeking them out. Exercise alone can give you such a great, feel good factor. And best of all its free.

In summary, make sure you are rewarding yourself for doing the right things instead of the wrong things.

 

Mark Corner is the owner and editor of a health and wellness blog which you can visit at www.losthattyre.co.uk He blogs about health, food, exercise and related topics.