The path to wellness is often marketed as easy and fast, but many people know that to be nothing more than an empty promise. The reality of improving your overall health entails several small steps. A multi-faceted approach, not a miracle pill, is what produces real payoff. Health is more than weight or fat content. Your wellness is a combination of multiple factors, both mental and physical. Supplementing your diet, controlling portions, and exercise can only get you so far without caring for your mind.
Supplements
Whether due to a hectic schedule, a bad diet, or your body simply not making enough of a certain something, you might consider taking a supplement. Things like total restore ingredients and simple multi-vitamins can be just what you need to stop feeling so tired all the time. While these are often marketed as suspicious cure-alls, the nutrients they offer can be quite useful. Before you start taking any sort of pill regularly, even if it is not prescribed, be sure to consult with your doctor. This advice appears on many of these products, but it never hurts to get a professional’s input.
Portion Control
For some people, weight is a contributing or aggravating factor to a wide range of health issues. Others simply want to shed some extra pounds, often finding they feel far more lively after doing so. Whatever the motivation, weight loss is not easy, no matter what the advertisements say. Miracle diets still soak up a considerable amount of airtime, despite being known as too good to be true. Likewise, the recently popularized, more extreme diets might yield extreme short term results, but for many people, they are simply not sustainable. A more viable option when it comes to diets.
For someone who wants to lose weight without backsliding, the secret isn’t so secret. Portion control just doesn’t have countless commercials endorsing it. Cutting back, even slightly, on your usual intake of food will have a significant impact on your weight. This effect won’t be instant or extreme, but it is sustainable and will garner long term results, so long as it is honored. Since it is not such a huge shift in your habits, maintaining portion control is far easier than, say, completely abandoning all things bread.
Manageable Exercise
As with portion control, just doing a little is better than suddenly doing a lot. Forming a small habit of ten-minute walks tends to be easier and far more lasting than suddenly spending a full hour at the gym every other day. Start with something that is fun for you and do it for a few minutes. Vary the exercise to stay interested. Set phone reminders like “You deserve a quick walk”, or whatever works to motivate yourself. Add a reasonable, manageable amount of exercise to your daily routine and build from there to whatever point is comfortable.
Mental Health
The wellness of your mind is often neglected in today’s fast-paced world. All the coffee and late nights at the office eventually wear on your mind and by extension, your body. How do you approach improving your mental health? For starters, be honest with yourself about whether you might need a therapist or even medication. While the stigma might be strong, serious mental health issues should not make anyone feel too ashamed to seek help. You can also try smaller steps, just like with portion control and exercise. Take a few more long, relaxing baths, or take that vacation you keep putting off. Don’t allow yourself to feel guilty for resting. You deserve it.
Knowing that slow and steady wins the race is different from practicing the mantra. However, with enough willpower and the right modest, manageable steps, you can start—and more importantly, continue—to improve your overall health. It may be hard in the beginning, but the advantage of making these small changes is that you won’t suffer from that crash more drastic ones can create. Keep reminding yourself that you are worth the effort.
