9 Habits to Improve Your Physical and Mental Health
When every new year comes around many people decide they need to make changes in their lives. It’s a natural time to reassess all aspects of our lives, including health. Do you need to improve your mental and physical health? If so you should introduce these 9 habits for better health into your daily life.
The pace of life today puts increased stress on all of us. The digital age and sheer pace of life puts our bodies under stress. This can often lead to problems both physically and mentally. You may realize that you need to introduce habits for better health into your routine, but where should you start?
Habits for better health you can start today
1. Get better sleep
Sleep is enormously important to overall health and wellbeing. It is the time when your body has a chance to repair itself. Lack of quality sleep will make you grumpy at best and can lead to illness at worst. One of the best things you can do is to develop a sleep routine. Go to bed at the same time each day and similarly wake up and get up at the same time each day.
It is tempting to sleep in at the weekends but in fact this can sap your energy as your body is constantly adjusting. You need to make getting a good night’s sleep a priority. Is that late night TV show really important? You can always watch it on catch up. And don’t burn the candle at both ends as my Mom would say.
2. Make time to destress
In much the same way as sleep is important, so too is taking some time out from the stresses of everyday life. You may have a life that is full of stress. This can be from work, money worries, kids, family etc. Whatever the cause, constant stress can lead to illness.
You need to find a way to get rid of stress that suits you. This can be through meditation or mindfulness but may be as simple as a walk in the great outdoors. Take a stroll in your local park and listen to the birdsong. Anther popular way to get rid of stress is through yoga, Tai Chi or Qi Jong.
Any of these pursuits will help take your mind off any worries and release pent up stress.
3. Get moving
Exercise is an important factor in keeping healthy in both mind and body. Choose an exercise that you enjoy and that raises your heart rate a little. This could be running, playing sport, jogging, cycling or even walking. Or you could take up aerobics, Zumba or dancing. Try to build at least 3 sessions of exercise into each week. Obviously if you have any health issues then speak to your doctor first.
Aside from regular exercise sessions you need to think about your normal daily life. If you have a job that means you are sitting at a desk all day then you should take regular short breaks. Get up from the desk, stretch your limbs and take time away from the computer screen. Sitting staring at a computer for hours can cause eye strain and general muscle tension in your body.
4. Include resistance training in your exercise plan
No matter which form of exercise you choose for your aerobic fitness, you also need to include some resistance training into your fitness plan. You don’t need to go to a gym, you can get a set of dumbells to use at home. The goal is not to build massive muscles but using weights will strengthen your muscles and bones. Resistance training can help protect against osteoporosis and muscle atroph. It has even been shown to have anti-aging effects.
5. Address your diet
The point of this article is not to tell you which diet plan you should follow. Paleo, Keto, Intermittent fasting there are many diet programs to choose from. Do some research and choose what seems right for your lifestyle and beliefs.
Whichever diet you choose there are some important points that can’t be ignored. You need a certain amount of carbohydrates, protein, fat, amino acids and minerals. Different diets will advise on which should be limited.
Two of the most important substances that can cause health problems are sugar and salt. In excess both will cause illness, most notably diabetes and hypertension although many other problems also.
If you cut down sugar and salt and increase your consumption of fruit and vegetables you will have a great starting point to better dietary health.
The food choices you make are within your control. These are habits for better health that are entirely within your grasp.
6. Supplement if necessary
Taking supplements can be helpful for addressing any deficiency in your diet. There are many supplements to choose from such as vitamin C, fish oil, magnesium, garlic oil, turmeric, ashwagandha etc. What you need will depend on your diet.
One vitamin that is definitely recommended in winter is vitamin D. During the summer we make Vitamin D but this relies on being exposed to sunlight. In winter when we get less sun, taking Vitamin D is a good idea.
If you are vegan, then you may need Vitamin B12 as it is predominantly found in animal products.
7. Have a digital detox
Social media can be a force for good or evil. It is good to be able to easily stay in touch with our friends and family around the world. However it can also be unhealthy at times. If you are basing your worth on the number of likes your post gets, then that is not healthy.
Some people seem to delight in posting nasty comments and causing disharmony. Negative comments and trolling can cause serious harm to some people. Even leaving aside personal comments it can be depressing to be constantly exposed to world problems.
Social media can be energy draining. You should limit the amount of time you spend on it. Make it a policy to get in, do what you have to do, and get out. You should be able to limit your sessions to half an hour if you avoid all those cute cat videos. Also unless you need to access the platforms for your work, then have a few days without any exposure at all.
8. Spend some time alone
You may have family responsibilities that mean you never seem to have any me time. But indulging in self care is never selfish. It’s like the adage of putting on your own oxygen mask before helping others. If you are completely frazzled then you will be of less use to your family. So even if you have a family, taking some time to be by yourself daily will do wonders for your soul.
Some quiet time alone in meditation or reading will help to calm your mind and senses and recharge your batteries.
“Silence and solitude are the soul’s best friends.” – Henry Wordsworth LongfellowClick To Tweet
9. Keep a gratitude journal
Journaling is a great way to relieve stress. When you put your thoughts down on paper, you unburden your mind. Do this last thing at night and it can help you sleep well. You can use this for planning and recording your goals, as a learning experience or just as a record of your current thoughts.
Include in your journal entry 3 things that you are grateful for. We sometimes find ourselves concentrating on what we feel is lacking from our lives. Turning that around and concentrating on things to be grateful for can lift your spirits. These can be big things like good health, a comfortable home down to tiny things that happened in the day. Perhaps someone paid you a compliment or your dog finally became house trained.
No matter how bad things seem we can always find something to be grateful for. And when you concentrate on the things you are grateful for, you will find it harder to be dissatisfied with your life.
“Gratitude turns what we have into enough.” - AesopClick To Tweet
Introduce habits for better health with commitment not motivation
These 9 simple tips are a good start to better physical and mental health. It is easy to get motivated about making better choices. However motivation doesn’t necessarily last long. It’s the reason why so many New Year resolutions fall by the wayside before January is over.
You need to replace motivation with commitment. When you commit to making these habits for better health a permanent feature in your life, you should soon start to see the benefits.
