How to Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
Physical fitness is not the sole basis of being healthy; being healthy means being mentally and emotionally fit. Being healthy should be part of your overall lifestyle. Living a healthy lifestyle can help prevent chronic diseases and long-term illnesses. Feeling good about yourself and taking care of your health is important for your self-esteem and self-image. Maintain a healthy lifestyle by doing what is right for your body.
1. Get moving
Physical activity is known to reduce the risk of numerous health issues such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease and can result in numerous long-term benefits. Physical activity doesn’t just have to be exercise, but can also include any sort of body movement. This includes activities such as dancing, swimming or even playing your favorite sport so you can maintain a healthy lifestyle while having fun.
If you are just getting back into exercise, take baby steps. Around 30 minutes of exercise, a day is sufficient, to begin with, and you can raise this in small increments. But be aware of your limitations and adjust the intensity of your physical activity accordingly.
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2. Maintain a regular exercise routine
No, you do not have to force yourself into intense workouts at the gym but you need to keep as active as possible. You can stick to easy floor exercises, swimming, walking, or simply keep yourself moving by doing some household chores. Do what your body allows you to do.
What is important is that you continue exercising. Give at least twenty to thirty minutes a day to exercise at least three to five times a week. Have a routine; see to it that you have enough physical activity each day.
3. Maintain a healthy diet
‘A healthy outside starts from the inside. In addition to physical activity, the food we eat is also essential to maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle. Eating the right food not only protects us from illnesses but also gives us the energy to engage in physical activity. It is important to balance your meals with grains and protein with a healthy serving of vegetables. You should also strive to stay away from processed foods (but a cheat meal once in a while is okay).
While what we eat is important, you should also control your food portions. Eating small portions throughout the day can help you stay active and energized all day long.
4. Surround yourself with positive energy
In order to have a sound mental and emotional state, you must surround yourself with positive energy. Yes, not all problems can be avoided. But it helps to face such obstacles with an optimist outlook. Surround yourself with encouraging friends and people that will provide you with constructive criticism every once in a while to help you improve.
Make it a habit to always look at the brighter side of life. Even if you find yourself in the worst situation, there is always an upside to it—something good and positive. Dwell on these things instead.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is not that difficult, nor does it require a lot of work. Just keep doing what you do and apply the staying healthy tips listed above—surely you will be a well-rounded individual in no time.
5. Pick a hobby
It’s never too late to pick up a new hobby! One of the best ways to maintain an active lifestyle is doing something you love. When you do something that makes you happy psychologically, it is known to release endorphins in the body. The brain focuses on an activity you enjoy such as a painting or dancing and the chemical reactions in your brain change for the better. These reactions can help reduce the risk of depression and anxiety. Moreover, picking up a hobby is also known to slow down the aging process. Aging can take a toll on a person’s mental and physical health but hobbies help your body and mind stay active and healthy. Research has shown that activities such as playing a musical instrument or gardening can prevent ailments such as arthritis and dementia and other common diseases.
6. Get a regular health checkup
Staying fit and active is essential for good health but routine health checkups are of utmost importance to maintaining your well-being. A health checkup can help analyze the state of your current health and also identify any potential illnesses. Health checkups can also help detect any changes you need to make to your current lifestyle. A yearly health checkup is recommended to ensure you are in the pink of health. Neuberg offers extensive health-checkup packages and routine health checkups.
7. Reward yourself
Adopting new habits is always a challenge at first. While sticking to your habits is important you should also reward yourself for all the effort you have taken to change your life for the better. If you are following a new diet, take a cheat day to enjoy some foods that you love. Alternatively, you can also set healthy-habit-specific goals and reward yourself with a movie or a nice dinner when you achieve them.
8. Set some fitness goals.
Want to take the prize at the company bowling outing? Or PR at this year’s Turkey Trot? Fitness goals are a great way to stay active, get in shape, and bask in the glory of victory. Start by setting goals that are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound – so you can benchmark your progress against them. An example of a SMART goal would be:
- I would like to decrease the amount of time it takes me to run a mile. I want to decrease it from 11 minutes to 9 minutes. I can measure my progress by timing my runs from now on – perhaps with a smartwatch or stopwatch.
9. Get a pet.
Playing with a furry friend can help add you rack up activity points. Routine walking, grooming, and playing fetch or catch-the-red-dot will get your heart pumping. Plus, the CDC and National Institutes of Health both recommend that pets can decrease anxiety, stress, and depression, lower your blood pressure, and even reduce your risk of heart attack or stroke.
10. Change the scenery.
It’s easy to become a couch potato, especially if you never leave the house. Plan a weekend getaway or trip somewhere you’ve always wanted to travel to. Experiencing the unknown will make you more inclined to get moving, check out some sights, and try new things. Let FOMO inspire you to chase waterfalls, wander through ancient ruins, or swim with the dolphins.
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