Improving your health can be a great goal, but it may not always feel easy. This can be particularly true if you are just getting started and find yourself struggling, or if you have been at it a while and find yourself hitting a plateau. The upside is, though, that improving your health doesn’t necessarily have to be difficult, and that there can be many small changes that can have a big impact when it comes to your health.
Eat a Healthier Diet
One of the first things you should do when trying to improve your health is assess your diet. While some may think they are eating a diet that is relatively healthy, the reality is that there are many foods marketed as diet foods that are full of harmful additives and extra sugars that can actually be detrimental to health, rather than helpful, and can even cause weight gain.
By taking some time to assess how many processed foods you eat, you can get a clearer picture of how healthy your diet actually is. Once you do this, you can begin including more nutrient dense foods, and focus on eating clean foods like lean meat, fresh fruits and vegetables, and leafy greens. Additionally, if you struggle to get all the nutrients you need out of your diet, including things like thrive experience may be helpful as well.
Switch Up Your Workouts
Another small thing that can be beneficial for improving your health is switching up your workouts. While some may think that it’s enough simply to work out, the reality is that over time your body can begin to adjust to your workouts, and they may end up not having the same impact that they once had. By throwing in new forms of movement from time to time, you can help ensure that your muscles respond faster to the exercises you do, and that your workouts are more effective overall.
Stay Hydrated
Something else that is key when it comes to being as healthy as possible is making sure that you are properly hydrated. Some may think that just because they don’t feel thirsty, they may not be thirsty and there’s nothing to worry about. The reality is, though, that dehydration can have many symptoms and many of them are subtle. Symptoms such as headaches, irritability and even feelings of hunger can all be signs of dehydration. While some may not be sure exactly how much water they should be drinking daily to stay hydrated, taking your body weight, dividing it in half and then drinking that many ounces of water a day is a good place to start.
Try Mindfulness
Improving your health isn’t just about looking after your physical body. Looking after your mental health can often have just as big of an impact, as well. This is due in part to the fact that stress, especially mental and emotional stress can wreak havoc on your physical health. Because of this, finding ways to combat it can be essential to feeling your best. One effective way to do this is with mindfulness, or meditation.
Meditation can often not only help you calm your nervous system and feel more at peace in the moment, but over time it may even be able to impact the way that your brain responds to stress in general. To get the most out of meditation, it can be a good idea to practice for at least 20 minutes, most days of the week. If 20 minutes feels like too long, starting in intervals of 5 to 10 minutes and building up can be beneficial.
Get Quality Sleep
Although most know getting good sleep makes a big difference for overall health, they still may not realize how significant of an impact it can make. Not only does a lack of sleep impair cognitive function, and worsen mood, but it can also have a direct impact on things like heart health, stroke risk, and your ability to lose weight. This is due in part to the fact that while you are sleeping, your body undergoes many healing and reparative processes, and when you don’t get enough sleep, your body often isn’t able to undergo these processes adequately, or at all.
Even though it may not always feel easy to get a full night’s sleep, the truth is there are many small things you can do to start improving your rest right away. Going to bed at the same time every night can be a great way to train your body for bedtime. Additionally, cutting down on screen time before bed can also result in deeper sleep cycles, as well.
Some Last Thoughts
Taking steps to improve your health can be a great thing to do. However, it might not always feel easy. The good news is, though, that having better health doesn’t have to be difficult, and that by doing things like cleaning up your diet and getting better quality sleep, you can start seeing changes in your health today.
