8 Health Hacks: A cheat sheet to stay healthy

I wasn’t always healthy, growing up, and also the knowledge surrounding health was very different back then from what we know now. Being from a small town, the internet only came to my house when I was 15. The reality was, the information you got, unless your parents and teachers would tell you, you just wouldn’t know. There was almost no way to stay healthy.

Now, there is so much information, how to trust what is even real anymore. For every subject you can find an argument for whatever you research and a counter argument that will prove the other one wrong. Not to mention, finding trustworthy information, especially about health, is starting to become challenging.

We all know what it means to be healthy and how to do it, but motivation day in and day out can be lacking. In addition, the constant stress from our lives makes it that much harder to stay healthy. Find below, the best 8 ways to stay healthy!

8 Ways to Stay Healthy

Hack 1: Reduce Stress

To begin, let me ask you, what part of your day is the most stressful. What would be your answer? Is it in the morning, maybe getting the kids ready for school or at night, getting them ready for bed. Take a minute to think about your normal week day, when is the time you feel you would rather not be there.

Let’s not forget, it’s okay to have stressful times during our day. We all do. Acknowledging when it is the most stressful and having a plan can help you.

To continue, when you find out what creates that stressful part of your day, you can start changing your habits in that period that would make it easier. If you have answered my entire day is stressful, start to focus on one part, no reason to overwhelm yourself.

Some examples include, making yours and the kids lunches at night or doing the dishes right after supper and including your kids in the process. Maybe even providing a daily task for your kids to help around the house. It doesn’t have to be perfect. You are their guide to their life, and it should start with the behaviors you are choosing to come up with. What role model do you want to be?

Remember this, small actions can make a world of difference! Set up those new tasks on your phone as a reminder! You can add a second one after a week!

Hack 2: Wake up earlier

I do know not everyone is a morning person, but I don’t mean to wake up a full 1 or 2 hours before.

As a mom, when my 6 year old wakes up, the time I get for myself disappears into thin air. All my focus became on my children and how to get them ready for the day ahead. What can you do to improve your self-care routine in the morning?

By slowly starting to wake up earlier even just 30 minutes before, you can have that relaxing time for yourself. This can include, more time in the shower, to even taking 10 minutes to just notice how calm and peaceful the world is around you. When is the last time you had a peaceful time drinking your tea in the morning?

In retrospect, I am not suggesting that you start working out right away. You can, but start by waking up earlier and enjoying this time for yourself. When it becomes easier and you want to introduce fitness to your morning life, please do so. Remember, stop overwhelming yourself and understand that you have enough on your plate. Enjoy a time to be peaceful.

For more information, if you would like to start to wake up earlier, but always end up pressing the snooze button, you can find my best 5 tips right below.

Hack 3: It’s all about food

Food will be a big part of your health and how you will remain healthy. Also, it is just, if not more important than exercises. By changing what you eat, you can start to lose weight, decrease your stress and anxiety, increase your energy levels, and more.

I know all too well that it is easier said than done. The way we live now makes it a lot harder to make healthy choices all the time. From your stressful daily life, the lack of time, the feeling you need to rush everywhere, your stress level increases everyday and the fast food restaurants are everywhere. Let’s not forget, if you want to go out to eat, good luck finding relatively inexpensive options that are still healthy.

Again, don’t be so hard on yourself. To start, just be mindful of your choices. It is not because you have made certain choices all your life that you have to keep on doing them everyday. Answer this question, who do you want to be? What would the best version of yourself look like?

It’s okay to want different things for yourself. By reducing the amount of processed food, and even introducing more home-cooked meals, you can introduce more healthy nutrients into your life.

For more details, including tips to start healthy eating, read further details below.

Hack 4: Drink Water

Do you have the impression that your life is a long list of things you need to remember. From food, to sleep, to self-care, to exercise etc. Our days add up with endless tasks and reminders. Our busy life makes it easy to forget everything. Are you one to forget to drink water regularly until you are so thirsty?

How much water do you even need on a daily basis?

A quick formula is your body weight in pound, divided by 2, the total amount divided by 8 will equal your minimum water requirement in glasses. Also, 1 glass of water should equal to about 8oz or 1 cup.

For example: 150 lbs / 2 = 75, 75/8= 9.375 (let’s say 10)

Hack 5: Reduce Screen Time

In an article from Comparitech, the average American spends 7 hours per day in front of a screen. This means some a bit less and some a lot more. The average person will spend up to 53 mins per day just on Instagram.

There is increasing evidence of weight gain due to the amount of screen time, even in children. Again, it’s about being mindful. Also, our phones have amazing technology to limit our consumptions and ensure to not be disturbed every minute of every day. The question is, are you using it?

Maybe it is time to pick up a new hobby!

If you would like more data and research, please read the article below.

Hack 6: Daily Exercise

There is different level of exercise and cardiovascular training, any coach would rather have their clients include daily smaller exercise than sporadic 30 to 60 mins every few months.

If you are sedentary or have very low levels of fitness, to ensure to build muscle and aerobic fitness, it is recommended to include a low-to-moderate level of intensity. Again, don’t be so hard on yourself. Focus on small achievable goals. If you want to get an easy fitness program for beginner, read my other article here.

Tip 7: Include Meditation

When you introduce meditation and awareness to your life, you begin to acknowledge what is surrounding you. In addition, by being mindful, making healthy choices for yourself and your family starts to be a lot easier.

Even a mere 5 minutes per day can help reduce stress, anxiety, and even help to reduce weight. We are surrounded with this mentality that it’s all or nothing, which I don’t believe in. Just like exercise, I would rather see my students take 5 mins 3 to 4 times per week than 30 mins once in a while.

By bringing consistency and a healthier routine to your life, you will began to see what works and what doesn’t work for you and appreciate the little changes. Start small and build up from there.

Hack 8: Listen to Music

Music has been around us forever, so simple to make sounds and get a beat going. We can sometimes forget the power that music has on our brain, body and even our mood. Music has been included in therapy to decrease a number of different health issues

The NorthShore University of HealthSystem has this amazing article about the 9 health benefits and how it can even help you be healthier.

Summary

Life doesn’t have to be all or nothing, every action you make on a daily basis adds up overtime. With the life you have now and the stress of trying to do it all, it is okay to have a different approach to your health. I am hopeful that with these 8 ways to stay healthy you can start your own journey right now.

By reducing your stress and understanding what makes you happier, you can begin to make healthier choices and be on your way to becoming the best version of yourself.

If you are ready to make this change and reduce your stress, contact me today for your free discovery call. Let’s find out your struggles and how to overcome them.

Pin it for later!