Get Our Simple Healthy Lifestyle Tips
What does it mean to live a healthy lifestyle? The answer will look a bit different for everyone, and it’s important to remember there is no “one-size-fits-all” prescription. When it comes down to it, being healthy is all about taking the steps that keep your body feeling strong in the long run. Some people might prefer to take a more literal approach to this, building muscle at the gym in order to feel healthy. Others might start from the inside, taking steps to feel better mentally and allowing that to reflect in their outer health. One fact of the matter is true for everyone, though, and it’s that being healthy is all about making positive lifestyle changes and developing sustainable habits that keep your body functioning as it should. Some of our top lifestyle tips for jumpstarting a healthy lifestyle include the following:
- Start with a healthy diet.
When you want to make positive changes for your body, your diet is a great place to start. A healthy diet is essential for good health and to keep your organs functioning to your benefit. A healthy diet will also work to protect you from many chronic noncommunicable diseases, like diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. To make healthy changes in your diet, experts recommend eating a combination of different foods, such as fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and grains. In order to have true success with your healthy diet, you will need to consume less salt and sugar.
Experts recommend eating less than 2300 milligrams (mg) of sodium per day. Unfortunately, most Americans eat an average of 3,400 mg per day, which contributes to high blood pressure and is linked to conditions like heart failure, kidney problems fluid retention, heart attack, osteoporosis, and stroke. When you look at it this way, we could all use a few more fruits and vegetables and a bit less salt. If you want to be extra proactive about your diet, be sure to get plenty of probiotics and fiber. This includes foods like yogurt, kimchi, kombucha, oatmeal, beans, nuts, and apples. Doing so will aid in digestion and help keep the bacteria in your gut at a healthy level, which will help prevent obesity.
- Cut out bad habits like excessive alcohol use and smoking.
We have all been warned about the dangers of drinking and smoking. Both are bad habits to incorporate into your life, and both trade long-term health for short-term pleasure. Although smoking used to be a typical part of daily life, experts have now determined that no amount of smoking can be considered safe. In fact, according to a study by researchers from the National Cancer Institute, individuals who smoke as little as one cigarette a day have a greater risk of early death than those who have never smoked.
In terms of drinking, this is not the safest activity for your health either, but if you consume more than a certain amount, you will cross the line into heavy or high-risk drinking. Specifically, if you are a woman and consume more than three drinks on a given day or more than seven drinks a week, you are consuming alcohol at what is considered a heavy or high-risk level. If you are a man and are consuming more than four drinks a day or more than four drinks a day or fourteen drinks a week, you are also consuming alcohol at what is considered a high-risk level. Avoiding smoking and excessive drinking will help your body stay strong and prevent disease.
- Get plenty of sleep.
When you jumpstart your healthy lifestyle, half the battle will be fought when you are not even awake. The amount of sleep you get plays a key role in healing and repairing your heart and blood vessels. Getting sufficient sleep can also improve concentration and productivity and reduce risk of heart disease and stroke. One of the most attractive qualities about getting enough sleep is that it helps regulate your metabolism. Even if you are taking all of the right steps towards feeling confidence in your body, if you are not getting the amount of sleep you need, you probably won’t see the full extent of the results. In terms of how much sleep you need, the amount can vary from individual to individual, but the National Sleep Foundation recommends that healthy adults get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep every night.
We hope these simple tips will give you the motivation you need to jumpstart your healthy lifestyle. If you would like to learn more about our specialized healthy living program, call Soza Weight Loss at (504) 475-9817 or contact us online.