Metabolic health is your body's ability to maintain ideal levels of blood sugar, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, blood pressure, and waist circumference. All these statistics help gauge your overall health. The better these numbers, the better your overall health.
If only a few people are healthy, surely there's no point in putting in the effort to get there right? If not, everyone will!
Not like that. There are many benefits to a healthy lifestyle, and learning to develop healthy habits doesn't have to be difficult.
Here are the main things you can do to lead a healthier lifestyle, how they will benefit you, and steps you can take today to implement them.
1. Eat Healthy Food
This is not new information, but it has always been at the heart of creating a healthy lifestyle. Without proper nutrition, almost nothing else you do will matter. Fueling your body with clean energy is the key to building a healthy lifestyle.
What Can You Do Today
You can't change your diet overnight. But you can make healthier options. Start by eliminating junk food, or at least hiding it from view or in hard-to-reach places.
Place healthy foods like fruit and vegetables in easy-to-reach places so you're more likely to snack on them. Take time each week to prepare vegetables so they are easy to add to dishes, or easy to munch on.
Every week, try a new healthy formula and find a new food you love. Changing your diet takes time, but every time you make a healthy choice, you are setting yourself up for a better life.
The Benefits of Eating Well
Eating healthy helps you maintain an appropriate weight, which is key to avoiding most of the most common causes of death. But it also improves your memory, gives you better energy, and can clear up bad skin and even headaches
2. Move Every Day
This is not a surprise either. You know you need more exercise. So what's holding you back?
But here's the cool thing. You don't need to go to the gym to benefit from more exercise. Very healthy people incorporate movement into their everyday lifestyle, not just in the gym.
What Can You Live Today
Start by simply moving more. Set a reminder on your phone to stand up every hour for 3 minutes or more. Take a walk at lunch. Park behind the lot. Always take the stairs.
But you also have to create a form of movement that you like. Even though weight lifting and cardio are important, working out shouldn't feel like a chore. If you enjoy rock climbing, yoga, soccer, dancing, or anything else that gets you moving, go for it!
The Benefits of Moving More
Better sleep, better energy, more muscle, more physically fit for longer in your life. You'll also be better looking, you'll be more active for longer, and you'll feel better about yourself. Regular exercise can even relieve symptoms of mental stress and anxiety.
3. Set a Regular Sleep Schedule
Sleep is fundamental to maintaining proper health. In a perfect world, you would wake and sleep with the sun's cycle. Even if it's not realistic for your lifestyle, you should still set a set bedtime and wake time that you follow each day.
What Can You Do Today
Highlight the issues that are keeping you from getting a good night's sleep. Upgrade your mattress or sheets if you're uncomfortable, or buy blackout curtains if the light is keeping you awake. Set white noise or pink noise to help you sleep better.
Establish a nightly routine that can help your mind rest. Include things like making a diary or setting up a diffuser with a lavender scent to help your brain fall asleep.
It's also smart to stop using technology one hour before going to bed, and stop eating 3 hours before going to bed.
Benefits of Proper Sleep
Regular sleep cycles can help you wake up with more energy, and improve your focus throughout the day. It also improves your memory and fights infections in your body to make you healthier. It can even help you lose weight.
4. Drink a lot of white water
If you drink your calories, you are doing it wrong. Water should be the main beverage you drink, and all (or at least most) of your calories should come from real foods.
What Can You Live Today
Get a water bottle that you like and start carrying it around. If you don't like the taste of water, get an infuser and add cucumber, mint, strawberries, or lemon so you can enjoy it more.
Often just having water nearby will help you drink more. You can also set triggers throughout the day to encourage you to drink, such as right after waking up, or just before mealtime.
Benefits of Staying Hydrated
Staying hydrated helps you keep your skin clean. It lubricates your joints and airways and supports your brain. You can feel more alert and consume fewer calories throughout the day. But it also helps remove waste in your body and keeps your blood pressure in check.
5. Manage the Stress in Your Life
A little stress or stress in a short time is very good for you. Long-term stress can wreak havoc. It contributes to ulcers, mental stress, anxiety, headaches, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
So learning to manage stress is important for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
What Can You Live Today
Meditating and journaling are often the 2 best DIY methods for managing stress. But it's also a good idea to find someone you can trust, whether it's a close friend or family member or therapist.
This is also a good idea to create space in your life to relax and have fun. Consider yoga, painting, or hiking, or whatever helps you relax.
Benefits of Reducing Stress
Reducing stress helps fight inflammation, headaches, depression, and anxiety. This can make it easier to maintain a healthy weight and other healthy lifestyle habits as well.
6. Build a Strong Social Circle
Taking care of your body is not enough to lead a healthy lifestyle. You also need to nurture your soul, and the best way to do that is to build a strong social circle.
What Can You Live Today
Spend time with your friends, family and community. Reconnect with someone you haven't spoken to in a long time, or join a new team or club. Try setting up regular coffee dates or lunch times with friends, and get to know your neighbors.
Benefits of Close Friends
Having someone you can rely on can fight depression and loneliness. These people can support you through dark times and encourage you to live your best life.
7. Don't Miss Doctor's Appointments
Make sure you visit your doctor and dentist as often as recommended. Early detection is the key to treating most stop diseases, and they cannot be detected early if you don't visit a doctor in time.
What Can You Live Today
Make sure you have a future appointment with your doctor. Visit dentists, doctors, and ophthalmologists in a disciplined manner. If you haven't been in a while, schedule an appointment today.
Benefits of Seeing a Doctor
Even if the initial trip (and subsequent bills) are unpleasant, regular doctor visits are key to catching illnesses before they become a problem.
8. Avoid Toxic Chemicals in Your Products
Personal products and cleaning solutions often contain many chemicals that we don't know exactly what they do. What's scary is that when more research came out, we found that they had negative health effects that we didn't even know about.
These are things like phthalates, sulfuric acid, ammonia, and more. In fact, of the thousands of chemicals that go into cleaning products, we only have a complete toxicity report for 7% of them.
What Can You Live Today
Start learning about the most universal chemicals in cleaning products as well as individuals, and learn how to identify them in your products. After that change it with a more comfortable alternative. Visit a high-quality hair shop or local health food store for more convenient options.
Benefits of Eliminating Toxins
The fewer toxins your body has to process, the less stress and infections you experience. Not only that, eliminating these toxins can lower the risk of long-term deadly diseases such as cancer. Ingredients such as triclosan, bisphenol A, phthalates, parabens, and alkylphenols have all been linked to breast cancer.
9. Use drugs in moderation
We usually talk about alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana because those are the legal ones. Drink alcohol or smoke marijuana in moderation and avoid tobacco.
While much research on cannabis is still being carried out, there is a link with more frequent lung problems, and a lack of motivation.
What Can You Live Today
Watch your relationship with drugs and alcohol. If you think it might be unhealthy, talk to someone professional.
Benefits of Preventing Drug Use
Alcohol is a very socially acceptable form of drinking, but that doesn't mean it's good for you. Restricting alcohol use protects your liver, and quitting smoking prevents lung disease.
The Benefits Of A Healthy Lifestyle Are Greater Than The Effort To Achieve It
There are many benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Even though it takes work to achieve it, the basics are easy to understand and apply. The pros outweigh the effort it takes to build a healthy habit.
So check out these tips for living a healthy life, and enjoying your best life.