5 Ways To Keep A Healthy Lifestyle Despite A Busy Schedule
It’s all too easy to use being busy as an excuse for not being as healthy as we could be – whether that’s not exercising as much as we should, or snacking throughout the day in lieu of a decent meal. In this post, Vanessa Davis of Diet St. looks at 5 simple ways you can combine your busy lifestyle with a healthy one.
There are many challenges that people living in the twenty-first-century face, but being healthy and taking care of themselves is by far one of the greatest. Somewhere between long commutes, never-ending working hours and stress we’ve forgotten what it means to pay attention to our well-being and the consequences are worrisome. As the world sped up, we struggled to keep up with it, and though we succeeded, it’s not natural and what’s more, the price to pay is usually our psychological and physical health, which is simply not acceptable.
When you think about it, nurturing healthy habits isn’t that difficult but unfortunately, external circumstances get in the way and we give up easily. Still, there are many ways to take good care of your health, and here are just 5 of them that are absolutely vital.
Not Feeling Well? Talk!
First, let’s talk about one fear that we all have in common – the fear of showing weakness. People all around the world battle mental disease and mood disorders but don’t even know they’re doing it because they’re too afraid to share how they feel. Though the technological progress of the human race can’t be denied, we still choose to hide who we are, and sooner or later, that lack of mental hygiene brings about problems. Seeing that so many health issues are caused psychosomatically, the very first rule of keeping every aspect of your health in check is to understand how you feel. If you’re troubled and can’t cope on your own, reach out to a therapist or a truly good friend, just don’t push yourself to do everything alone. Though most of your demons you have to fight off on your own, there are some that can only be defeated with professional help and guidance.
Not Sleeping – Not Functioning
Another habit you should never joke with is your sleeping. Getting enough time to rest is what makes everything else we do possible, though we often forget about it when we’re facing a deadline, an exam or a problem that we can’t solve. The imbalance that comes with the lack of sleep can easily be the cause of countless health conditions that can seriously disrupt and endanger your life. It might seem harmless to sleep less than 7 hours couple of times a week, but in the long haul your body suffers from the lack of time to replenish and it affects everything, from your mood to your bones. Whether you’ve got trouble sleeping or you make an excuse of not having enough time to get rest, it all trickles down to the same conclusion – lack of sleep means lack of focus and productivity, weakened immune system and this is just the tip of the iceberg. In order to prioritize your health, it’s essential to get plenty of sleep every night (7+ hours), as well as have an established routine when it comes to going to bed and waking up.
Move Your Body
It doesn’t matter how you decide to do it, but it’s incredibly important to lead an active life. Your metabolism needs movement and physical activity in order to thrive and that’s hardly possible if you sit around all day, first at the office, in your car, and at home. Moving your body doesn’t imply that you must hit the gym five days a week or be a full-time yogi, though you can also do that if you’re so inclined. The point of being active is doing something you love and incorporating some much-needed movement into the equation. Try running with your dog, or going to dance lessons with your partner, discover new hobbies that will have you excited for the upcoming physical activity, instead of being in the constant state of dread of exercise. Try not to base your natural need for activity solely on the fact that you want to look good – the balance between your mind and your body is vital, so understand that while you’re working on the physical aspect of yourself, all of you reaps benefits from it.
Having a Healthy Relationship with Your Food
This doesn’t just mean eat healthily and steer clear from processed and junk food as often as you can, though this notion is certainly significant. Eating well and what’s good for you means having a healthy relationship with your food and not seeing it as a source of comfort or a source of calories that you want to avoid at all cost. If you work on seeing the food on your plate for what it is – delicious fuel for your metabolism that you can enjoy, you will rarely have problems with being overweight and eating unhealthily. When you truly understand that ingesting minerals, protein, vitamins and simple carbohydrates is absolutely paramount for your well-being, there won’t be any attraction for the food that is packed with sodium, sugars and whatnots. Focusing on eating well will lead you to better understanding your body and what it needs in order to function optimally and we could all use more that kind of awareness.
Know When to Stop
A notion that so many people are still unfamiliar with is that we all need to stop and be human from time to time. So much of what we do in our everyday lives happens on autopilot, we don’t stop to acknowledge and appreciate what’s going on around us and inside us. The ability to stop and really see yourself and your life is invaluable because it allows us to gain a fresh perspective and become better on every level but unfortunately, it is vastly unappreciated. You’ll maybe say how there’s no time to stop and smell the roses when you’re trying so hard to live well, but here’s a reality check – how well can you truly live if you miss out on the most of your life? Most of us don’t ask ourselves that question often enough and some don’t wonder at all, stuck in the constant noise of their mind. Knowing when to stop will not only help you stay healthy, it will provide insight into where you truly stand in the grand scheme of things and what you can do to be truly good for yourself and your environment without endangering your health.
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