Hey there, I just wanted to give you some of my most useful and simple wellness tips so that you can hit the ground running today and everyday. A simple approach to health, fitness and wellness is a great place for everyone to start or reset.
Life is not about what diet you are on, what challenge is next, or what a friend may be doing; instead it is about living your life to the fullest at your optimum health. We all need to incorporate the healthy tips and changes into our everyday lives, so that they become a habit; start with one and then incorporate more as you master them.
Here are our top 5 Wellness Tips to give you some simple ways to improve your health and start living your life to the fullest.
1. Breath.
Sounds pretty basic and should go without saying BUT we all forget to breath properly, and I am right there with you. When we become overwhelmed and stressed our breathing becomes more shallow and rapid. When you are feeling this way, just take a second and focus on slowing down your breathing. Take a few slow and long breaths; (4 secs in, 4 secs out) you will very quickly become more relaxed. Focus on something simple while breathing for a moment; something beautiful inside or out; through a window. If you are in the middle of a meeting and becoming overwhelmed take a moment, place your hand on the table and focus/feel how warm or cold the table and your hand is. Try and do this regularly through your day and you will feel and stay more relaxed, focussed and calm.
2. Sit Down to Eat.
This is an easy one that we all forget about; but how many of us eat in the car, standing up, at our desk, on our computer, in front of the TV with a plate on our lap? We are so out of touch with food and meal times that we eat out of habit, mindlessly and in a hurry. I urge you to sit down to eat, and not in front of a TV or computer, but at a table and really enjoy your food. Put your utensils down between bites; slow down. You will most likely feel more satisfied after the meal and won’t be as tempted to go grab something else to keep you company on the couch. Leave the couch cuddles for pets and humans, not chips and ice cream.
3. Drink water and enough of it.
Many of us get by with coffee, food and sugar sweetened beverages when our bodies really need water. We should start our day with water, and continue drinking water throughout the day. A thing many people forget. An easy way to drink more water is to grab a water bottle and keep it with you making sure it is always full. Rule of thumb is to drink eight, 8-ounce glasses, which equals about 2 litres of water a day. This is called the 8×8 rule and this makes it easy to remember. If you realize that you are drinking no water and this amount is hard at the beginning, just start out with what you can and everyday try and drink more.
4. Move throughout the day.
Great if you get a workout in during your day but we all should still look for other ways to get moving. Maybe it’s a short walk on your lunch break. Maybe it’s getting a stand up work station; or it’s being creative and making your own stand up desk. Maybe it’s challenging your coworkers to a 50 squats/day challenge. You get the point. Whatever it is, get moving during the whole entire day. There are many apps available now that can remind us to move, how often to move or help us to move. Remember we all should be getting our 10000 steps in a day. Get your fitness tracker on and you may be shocked at how little we are moving.
5. Get to Bed.
We need 7 to 9 hours of sleep to be at our optimal health. Sleep can help with everything including athletic performance, memory, behaviour, anxiety, weight loss, sex drive and so much more. Turn off the television, the devices, you will not miss anything. Go to bed and sleep, you, your brain and body will feel better for it.
If these 5 tips are overwhelming to you, that’s okay, start with one and you will be better today than you were yesterday. Once you’ve put one into place, start with the next and so on. Small steps can lead to a long term lifestyle change.