Many people assume that in order to live a healthy lifestyle they need to go to all extremes. The truth is that whilst eating clean and other strict diets can work; they are hard to maintain. The good news is that it really isn’t hard to make healthy decisions and turn your life around.
It is important to remember that most of it is about balance. There is no point going too extreme and giving up everything you love because this will make it much harder to stay motivated and keep it up. There is nothing wrong with having treats and ‘bad’ food as long as you enjoy everything in motivation.
Drink More Water
One of the best things you can do to improve your health is drink more water. So many of our everyday health complaints are down to us not drinking enough water. We should be aiming for 8 large glasses of water a day, but if you can’t do this then 6 at a minimum. If you are someone that is always feeling lethargic and has no energy then this could be down to a lack of water in your life. One tip is to make sure you drink one glass of water every hour you are at work – that way you get into a routine and drinking enough water becomes second nature.
If you are someone that doesn’t really enjoy the taste of water then you need to do what you can to make it more interesting. Lots of people choose to infuse fruit into their water. This involves leaving fruits overnight in the water. You can use all sorts of different fruits to flavour it depending on your personal preference. If you look online you can even find fruit infusion recipes and ideas.
Eat Better Meals
Many of us live fast paced lives which means that we don’t have time to cook and prepare fresh meals. This leaves us grabbing things to eat quickly, which fill us up but don’t give us any goodness.
The best thing you can do is get organised and plan meals in advance. When you have time you should be bulk cooking meals and freezing them. That way you can just grab one of these out of the freezer when you are ready and have a home cooked meal in just a few minutes. There are lots of meal ideas which can freeze so it is worth looking online for some inspiration.
Another good idea is to invest in slow cooker. These allow you to put everything you need inside in the morning and cook them slowly throughout the day. This means that when you get home you’re going to get a perfectly cooked meal, ready when you walk through the door. This is also a great way of feeding the family who might come home at different times because the food is there ready for them when they want it.
Try to get more organised when it comes to lunches too. Make salads for work the night before or batches of homemade soup that you can just dip into when you are hungry. Upping the amount of wholesome food you eat will make a big difference.
Get More Exercise
Most of us are lucky in that we own cars or live on good public transport routes. This is great but we need to consider how much this could be harming our health. When we have such good access to vehicles it is so tempting to just jump into them and get to where we need to go.
What you should actually do is make a conscious effort to add a little more walking into your daily routine. Exercise with a view to making your body a little healthier doesn’t need to be too vigorous, just something that gets your heart pumping a little faster.
There are several tips you can follow which can help to get you moving a little more. If you are taking the bus somewhere force yourself to get off one or two stops before where you need to be. This might only be a 10 minute walk but if you do this twice a day then it will soon make a difference to your health. In fact walking like this every day is a good way to build up your stamina and you might find that you end up walking better quite quickly.
You can also make sure that you take the stairs every time you need to rather than just jumping in the lift. Sometimes lifts or escalators can seem like the easier option, but it is far better for your health if you take two minutes out to take the stairs instead.
Have The Right Medicines at Home
No one wants to think about getting ill but we have to face facts that it will happen. The best thing you can do is make sure you have a medicine cupboard at home that you can dip into if you need to. Just ensure that this is locked away so anyone who isn’t supposed to can’t get near it.
For starters you should make sure that this box contains painkillers as these are always handy to have nearby. You should also make sure you have something for both constipated and diarrhea. It is also a good idea to have indigestion remedies and something to settle your stomach if you get unwell.
If you suffer with any ongoing ailments or re-occurring illnesses then it is a good idea to make sure you have these stored in there too, just in case. So for example you might want to invest in some extra Hemocyl piles treatment or eye drops if you get bad eyes. You know your health better than anyone else.
Look after it by stocking up on the items that you might need. That way if you do ever feel under the weather you can tackle it straight away with the medicines you need from your medicine cabinet.