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3 lifestyle habits to live longer and better

1. Get a good night sleep!

Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well being throughout your life. Getting enough quality sleep at the right times can help protect your mental health, physical health, quality of life, and safety. … During sleep, your body is working to support healthy brain function and maintain your physical health.

With too little sleep, stress hormones and inflammatory markers increase, the immune system weakens, and neurologic impairment results. “That’s like removing your body’s first line of defense, while asking its big guns to be ready in case they’re needed.”  You’re drawing on resources that require more energy, when you have less energy to access. The result is fatigue, manifested mentally, muscularly and/or in your immune system.

Yet knowing you should have more sleep and getting it are two very different things. In fact, stressing about the need for sleep may hinder your ability to get it.  Fortunately, there are methods to improve your sleep that you can put into place today.

SLEEP TIPS

  1. Encourage your body to wind down at night by keeping daily deadlines for your final stimulant of the day—last coffee, laptop close, final phone screen scroll.
  2. Manage your sleeping environment for optimal rest. Keep your room tidy, temperate and free of blue light from electronic devices.
  3. Measure your sleep. Use a sleep app to check that you’re meeting your goals, and track your progress over time.
  4. Set a weekday bedtime that’s appropriate for your nature and your household. Structure your habits to adhere to it most days.
  5. Getting ready for bed can be tiring, so get organized early while you still have the energy. Try starting on your following day preparations early evening or even afternoon.

 

2.  Eat healthy foods!

Eating a healthy diet doesn’t have to be overly complicated. While some specific foods or nutrients have been shown to have a beneficial effect on mood, it’s your overall dietary pattern that is most important. The cornerstone of a healthy diet pattern should be to replace processed food with real food whenever possible. Eating food that is as close as possible to the way nature made it can make a huge difference to the way you think, look, and feel.

Healthy eating and good nutrition start by making nutrient-rich, healthy food choices (foods with large amounts of vitamins and minerals in fewer calories) from all of the food groups. Choosing a variety of nutrient-rich foods as the foundation of what you eat can help you live a longer, healthier life!

NUTRITION TIPS

  1. Keep a one-week food diary to make sure you’re hitting all your nutrient goals.
  2. Every week, sample a new seasonal vegetable (or vegetable recipe) you’ve never tried before.
  3. Improve your vegetable and fruit intake by stocking up on frozen and canned goods. Check labels to make sure there’s no added salt, sugar or sweeteners.
  4. Don’t be afraid of fructose, but try to have your fruit before 4 p.m. each day.
  5. When you go to a restaurant, broaden your tastes and maximize your nutrients by trying out the most interesting vegetarian dish on the menu.
  6. Anticipate your low-energy times of day and plan in advance for a nutrient-packed snack.
  7. If you’re tempted to eat when you’re not truly hungry, distract yourself with an activity incompatible with eating such as playing with your pet or cleaning your teeth.

 

3. Meditate everyday

Regular meditation helps in relieving stress and thus improves the quality of sleep. Less stress means more happiness. You will live a happier and healthier life with meditation…. It is believed that meditation improves the immune system and thereby helps in controlling blood pressure and lowering blood cholesterol.

The popularity of meditation is increasing as more people discovers its benefits. Meditation is a habitual process of training your mind to focus and redirect your thoughts. You can use it to increase awareness of yourself and your surroundings. Many people think of it as a way to reduce stress and develop concentration.

People also use the practice to develop other beneficial habits and feelings, such as a positive mood and outlook, self-discipline, healthy sleep patterns and even increased pain tolerance!

Tell me in the comments below: What is your takeaway from this article, and what would you do to start putting that takeaway into action? 

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