This is a collaborative post.
We all know someone who seems to lead the perfect, green, healthy lifestyle. They’re constantly posting up their leafy meals, pictures of themselves at their yoga classes, and preaching about something or other. This is a great lifestyle for some. But for those of us with kids, jobs, and a seemingly endless list of tasks to complete, being inherently healthy can prove a little more difficult. We’re more likely to be picking at our little ones’ left overs while picking up toys than cooking up a raw, vegan tapas platter. We’re more likely to be getting out of breath running for the train that will get us into work on time than taking a spin class down the gym. But you don’t necessarily have to dedicate your entire life to health and wellbeing to live a healthy lifestyle! Here are just a few different things you should consider if you want to be healthier and happier around a hectic daily routine!
Switch Up Your Eating Routine
If you’re not sitting down to three meals a day, it’s time that you do. Sure, it may be easier to grab something to eat on the go in the mornings. It may be simple to get a meal deal on your lunch break. Takeaways on the evening do free up your time. But you need to dedicate a little more time and effort to your diet. Make sure that you are cooking fresh food more than you aren’t. Incorporate plenty of vegetables. Vary your dishes – the more variety, the more different ingredients you’re putting into your body. You may also want to consider cutting out meat in this process. Studies have found that vegetarian and vegan diets can be much more beneficial for your overall health, cutting out excess saturated fats and encouraging you to eat more greens.
Quit Bad Habits
There’s a never ending number of bad habits that people can engage with. Engaging with just one or two can have profoundly negative consequences for our health. So, identify any that you may have and start removing them from your routine. If you have a few glasses of wine each evening, cut down to a couple, then cut down to one. If you smoke, start weaning yourself off cigarettes with the help of nicotine replacement products, then wean yourself off the nicotine replacement products. Of course, this isn’t going to be a process that gives immediate results. But patience is a virtue and you will feel much better for your efforts in the long run. If you find yourself struggling, visit www.help4addiction.co.uk/. You will be able to find all of the support that you could possibly need!
Buy Your Own Yoga Mat
Yoga has so many health benefits. It improves your flexibility, strength, and posture. It can teach you helpful breathing methods that ease away tension and stress. It can encourage you to be more mindful. But you don’t necessarily have to head out to a yoga class at the gym or a specialist yoga school every day to get involved. Sure, it’s good to head to a few of these every now and then so that a specialist can check your lines. But if you buy your own yoga mat, you can follow online tutorials whenever you get five minutes spare in the day. You can get a little yoga done without having to make yourself presentable to the outside world, travel to a specific location, or prep yourself for a lot of social interaction when you might just want five minutes to yourself.
Replace Your Chosen Drinks with Water
Keeping hydrated is important and there are plenty of different drinks out there to choose from when you get a little thirsty. But consider replacing any drink that you pick up with water. Sure, it’s fine to have a fizzy drink every once in a while. Tea and coffee may bring a little more joy to your day. But water is generally the best option every single time. Why? Well, it doesn’t contain sugars. It doesn’t contain artificial sweeteners, colours, or additives. As long as it’s clean and pure, there aren’t any cons that come hand in hand with a glass of water. Aim to drink around eight glasses every single day. This will help your body in regards to physical health, as well as your appearance.
Monitor Your Mental Health
When we talk about health and wellbeing, we do tend to focus on physical health. But your mental health is just important! Poor mental health can be just as detrimental to you as poor physical health. So make sure to monitor your mental wellbeing and to be alert to any changes that you may experience. If you find yourself suffering from symptoms of poor mental health – this could be something as seemingly simple as feeling down regularly, experiencing rapid fluctuations in your mood, or struggling to deal with your emotions – it’s important that you reach out for professional health. Visit your doctor or a psychiatrist or psychologist. These professionals can all assess your state of being and determine whether you need a little help. They will be able to provide treatment – either medicinal, therapy, or a combination of the two – and help to set you on the right track. People are becoming much more understanding of mental health, so make sure you understand how you are feeling and take the necessary time to improve your mental health whenever possible.
Allow Yourself a Social Life
Sure, the majority of us are rushed off our feet. We can often feel that we don’t get a moment to ourselves. So it’s not all too surprising that many of us end up regularly cancelling social plans, or fail to make social plans to begin with. But do your utmost to ensure that you still allow yourself a social life of sorts. Being able to spend time with friends doing things you love will dramatically increase your happiness. Dedicate a little time to it!
As you can see, there are various things that you can do to lead as healthy and happy a lifestyle as possible. Start prioritising your wellbeing!