Your health and general wellbeing are important so that you can try and lead an active lifestyle. It is something that perhaps many of us have learned to appreciate even more this past year due to the pandemic. It can be difficult to stick to a particular routine and follow a strict diet, so finding small ways in which you can incorporate daily tasks into your day that will be beneficial for your overall health is certainly worth trying.
A Good Night’s Sleep
Getting good quality sleep each night is important for your body to rest and recover in preparation for another day. It is the quality of sleep that is important as opposed to how many hours you get. Feeling fully refreshed enables you to be able to concentrate on your daily tasks and remain productive. You are less likely to make mistakes when you are not sleep-deprived, which is certainly vital when driving or dealing with heavy machinery.
Over time, if you struggle to sleep, it can start to affect your body’s hormone, which regulates your appetite. So you are more likely to opt for unhealthy foods and eat larger portions of foods if you continuously function on little sleep. A study that was carried out at the University of Warwick discovered that those that were not getting enough sleep were at greater risk of developing heart disease or stroke.
Drinking Enough Water
It might not be the most exciting drink, but drinking enough water daily contributes to good health. Sometimes we can confuse hunger with thirst, so it is always worthwhile to drink some water first to ensure that it is not just hunger your body is crying out for. Water is essential because it hydrates you, keeps joints working efficiently, flushes out waste from your body, regulates body temperature, and enables your brain to function properly.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine suggest that the average amount of water that men require is around 15.5 cups of water (125 ounces) a day and 11.5 cups (91 ounces) for women. This will, of course, vary if you are physically active too. As long as you are not feeling excessively thirsty all the time, you will know whether you are consuming enough water each day.
A Balanced Diet
Eliminating one food group or following a very restrictive diet where you are not eating enough calories will not be a healthy way of eating. Instead, it would help if you were aiming to eat a balanced diet that encompasses all the food groups (unless, of course, for dietary reasons, you cannot eat certain foods). Ideally, you want to be including a variety of the main five food groups.
Vegetables — Fruits — Protein — Dairy — Grains
Each food group provides a different health benefit for the body. Vegetables are full of various vitamins and minerals and help your immune system to function properly. Fruits are also a great source of vitamins and antioxidants that can help your heart and the body fight off various diseases. Protein is important for your metabolism and blood system. It also enables your bones and muscles to work efficiently. Dairy is rich in Vitamin D and Calcium, which is essential for maintaining your teeth and bones. It can also help reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease. Grains are important in maintaining blood sugars and providing a source of iron, fiber, and minerals. Collectively these five groups provide an abundance of health benefits for your body to function and thrive efficiently, which is why ideally, we need all of these to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Eat Before You Go Food Shopping
It is a good idea to ensure you eat before food shopping as you are more likely to be tempted by unhealthy foods and not just purchase the groceries on your list, like stocking up on Asian pantry essentials. This will prevent you from being tempted to buy unhealthy foods and spend money unnecessarily on items you do not even need. A study published in the National Academy of Sciences discovered that hungry shoppers were much more inclined to spend money on food and non-food essentials, despite not even needing these items. So it is not just your waistline that can be affected but also your wallet.
Finding Time to Relax
Your mental and physical well-being is linked to feelings of happiness and the ability to relax. This is particularly important when you lead a hectic, stressful life. It would help if you found moments to do activities that encourage a sense of calm and enable you to feel content. Finding moments to wind down is part of leading a healthy lifestyle. Feelings of stress can lead to heart complications, such as increasing your blood pressure or a heart attack risk. So whether it is doing some gentle exercises, reading a book, being creative, cooking, baking, playing a musical instrument, or going for a walk, it is important to break up the day with an activity you enjoy.
Out In the Fresh Air
Finding the motivation to do an intense workout is not necessarily appealing, but it does not have to be a vigorous exercise session to be beneficial. The Journal of the American Heart Association published a study that demonstrated that short 10 minute sessions were adequate to experience the positive effects of exercise. So you do not need to be attempting marathons to consider yourself to be doing an adequate amount of exercise. Just being out in the fresh air in your local park can certainly make a positive difference. When you have a dog, you will probably find more motivation in venturing out so that both you and your pet can benefit from getting outdoors into the fresh air.
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