Be it physical or mental, changes are not easy. To get an effective lifestyle and changes which can give you better health, you need to put effort and accept the changes. Changes include habitual changes, eating changes, changes in regular activities, and the addition of some extra activities.
Changes in all these things can be a bit challenging but are not impossible. Everything needs positive thinking, if you take things with positivity and an accepting attitude, the challenge becomes easier for you.
To start the working of lifestyle changes you need to get started from the beginning. Start with a goal, identify why you want this change and in what time duration you want to reach the results. Setting goal is an important task before actually getting started with the challenge. Defining a goal gives you a clear idea and your need to follow the entire changeover in your lifestyle.
1. Mental health:
You must be thinking, why we are talking about mental health while discussing lifestyle and healthy living. Let me make it simple for you. If you want to makeover your lifestyle, you need to start it mentally. Unless your mental health is not stable or unless you are not mentally changing, things are not going to change in actuality. Remember the first step in changing lifestyle is not the diet nor is it exercise.
What can help in maintaining healthy mental health?
We often keep giving burden to our brain. We take the load of everything and especially office work continuously. What our mind needs is a break, a break from work, a break from overthinking. Make sure you are taking time to relax in between your work. Always takes things positively. Positivity and positive thinking act as medicine for the brain. All these small things shouldn't be ignored while finding a path to a healthy lifestyle.
2. Healthy eating:
The second important thing in making changes is diet. What you eat, what you consume, and how much you consume decides the whole game. Changes in eating are the hardest part for food lovers and I agree with it. But remember your goal and make yourself ready to do this challenge. Healthy eating doesn't mean start eating only boiled foods and keep yourself starving for hours. Start the process slowly, take baby steps and you will get used to the eating habits. The first thing you need is to learn about healthy foods and food portions. Healthy eating includes a variety of foods, you need to know what is the right food for you and in what quantity you have to intake. Make a list of foods that are healthy and you should eat them on regular basis. In the same way, make a list of foods that are not healthier for you and you have to avoid or consume it in very little quantity.
Along with high protein and nutrients rich foods, foods that contain fat are also important. So this doesn't mean you have to start eating oily foods and junk. Fat here means healthy fat. There are food items that have good fats included in them which are important for a healthy body. Make your serving easier in the way where you will divide your plate into two sections, one for leafy vegetables, and another for all proteins, vitamins, and fiber-rich foods. Make sure you reward yourself once in a week or two. Don't be harsh on yourself and follow the healthy food chart consistently.
3. Increase physical activity:
A golden way to change your lifestyle for better health is to add more physical activities. What you have to do to maintain stable and good health is to be physically active and participate in tasks that give your body a physical workout. The important thing that can help in this task is to reduce the sitting time while working. You can take several breaks in between and have a walk for 5 - 10 minutes. And that's enough to break the continuity of sitting time. Get up and start doing things that involve the body doing some actions. Sitting or lying for a long time is not good for your health therefore you should avoid continuously being in the same position. Working or doing some physical task is very very important for your entire body.
Taking a walk in between your office work can boost your efficiency and keeps you fresh for a longer time. Physical activity does not only mean exercise or walking, doing household work can also be a great way to be physically active. Help in household works, stay active in doing something instead of just sitting in one position. One more thing which you can do is to start calculating your daily steps. Install step tracker on your phone and set a mark which you have to cross on daily basis.
4. Take time for yourself:
It's proven that excessive work or doing similar things regularly makes you less efficient. Following a certain timetable and list of things, every day may irritate you one day. So to get freshen up you need to give some time to yourself. It's important to take some time and go for an outing. Indoors for a longer time make us fed up. Spend at least 1 - 2 hours of a day outside. Your body needs some fresh air and a break from continuous work. Relax and go for a walk in a garden nearby. Or if you are worried about going outside in lockdown you can take a walk on your terrace. The idea is just to get out of the house, be it a garden, terrace, or a vacation. Daily activities and continuous staying indoors make you boring and can reduce productivity. To make lifestyle changes and to make it healthier you need to accept this change and make it a habit.
5. Exercise or Yoga:
Your body needs some exercise which can boost your health and make your body stronger. Most of you will be thinking of the gym when I say exercise. But exercise is not equal to the gym, understand. For staying healthy and maintaining your body and weight, you have to do some sort of exercise that will help you get fit. Even if you don't want to do exercise and want something more relaxing you can start doing yoga. Yoga is a form of spiritual practice that makes your body healthier and makes you mentally calm and concentrated. The effects and good feeling of yoga can only be known after practicing it. Try to start your day with yoga for 15 - 20 minutes. Start with some regular breathing exercises and then follow some other asanas. Yoga and exercise will surely help you a lot in changing your lifestyle for better health.
6. Good sleep:
Good sleep is key to remain healthy. No matter how much you work out, how much you be physical activities, and how much you stay focused, the path of a healthy lifestyle will not be completed until you pay attention to your sleep. Changes in sleeping habits are important if you want to succeed in healthy living. You need a minimum of 8 hours sleep at night. It's ok if sometimes you don't meet the correct timing but try to sleep at least 7 hours. Other than sleeping time, the time to go to bed also plays an important role. It is not good if you had dinner at 10 pm and go to sleep at 12 pm. All these unhealthy sleeping habits make you anxious. Instead, complete your meal before 8 - 8:30 and try sleeping before 10:30 - 11 pm. Poor sleeping also affects your weight and reduces your productivity and concentration on another day. Even on some days reward yourself with some extra hour or minutes to sleep. By doing so, your eyes will get enough rest, and the next day you will feel fresher.
Bottom line:
The march towards a healthy lifestyle will be completed only if you stick to the goal properly. Nothing can be achieved overnight. Unless you put some effort and make it your daily lifestyle you will not be able to see the results. All these habits are power booster and really useful to make you healthier. So, concentrate on your goal and try to stay healthy regularly. Don't be harsh on your body and health. Start the new lifestyle journey and stay healthy.
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