If waking up at 5 a.m. for a two-hour workout is your thing, then go for it, but if you find the pressure of keeping up a fitness routine and opting for clean eating just a little overwhelming, these wellness tips will help.
We all juggle work, friends, and family, and a typical modern lifestyle is full of stress and anxiety. It’s easy to lose the balance between obligations and self-care. Taking the little steps that make you happy and help you lead a healthy life.
You can make grand gestures: sign up for a marathon, commit to the gym 3 times a week, and follow a plant-based lifestyle, but aim too high, and all the best intentions fall apart. Instead, try and add good habits to your daily routine one at a time. Don’t aim for perfection, just consistency.
The little things add up to big results.
39 Wellness Tips For A Healthier Lifestyle
Follow these self-care tips to start living a healthier lifestyle:
1. Be kind to yourself (and other people)
If your good intentions don’t go to plan, there’s always another day. Each day is a fresh start. Think about what little steps you can take to improve your life today, and don’t beat yourself up about unhealthy choices you’ve made in the past. Be kind to yourself.
Be kind to other people, not just because it’s the right thing to do. Being unkind quickly becomes a source of stress and anxiety. Instead, treat people the way you’d like them to treat you and simply avoid unpleasant people.
2. Enjoy The Little Things
Anything that makes your day a little brighter and better – savor it. Being in the present and enjoying the little things can be a great source of happiness.
3. Set Aside Time For Self Care
Your mind and body are important and need to be maintained and nurtured. Self-care isn’t taking a bubble bath once a year; it’s setting aside time to look after yourself and make sure you can always perform at your best.
4. Never Grocery Shop On An Empty Stomach
When you’re trying to follow a healthy eating plan, it’s easier to make the right food choices when your cupboards are full of healthy food. Go shopping when your stomach’s rumbling, and those high-fat, high-calorie processed food choices will find their way into your trolley.
5. Drink A Glass Of Water First Thing
Start your day with a glass of water, and you’ll notice how wonderful it tastes. Your body will appreciate the hydration, and it’s a good way to help you wake up.
6. Track Your Step Count
The simple act of walking is enough for most people to improve their fitness, and tracking your step count using a Fitbit or an app on your phone gives you the incentive to move more. 10,000 steps a day is a good target, but if your step count is normally very low, start with a target you can achieve every day. 5,000 steps every day is far better than 10,000 steps just once a week.
7. Prioritize Sleep
When you’re busy, it’s easy to skimp on sleep. Don’t do it! Make sure you get 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night. Adequate sleep makes it easier to control your weight and find the energy to exercise, and it will help improve your concentration. When you’re not getting enough sleep, your stress levels and mental health can be impacted.
8. Eat The Rainbow
Different colors of fruit and vegetables contain different nutrients. If you want to maximize your intake of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals, fill your plate with colorful food.
9. Start Your Day With A Healthy Morning Routine
Getting a good start to the day can put your mindset in a healthy, happy place and help you cope better with whatever the rest of the day brings. Here are some ideas for a realistic and healthy morning routine.
10. Top Up Your Vitamin D
Sunlight is one way of topping up your vitamin D levels, and most people benefit from spending time outdoors, especially when the sun is shining. Don’t forget your sunscreen – you still need protection from harmful UV rays. At most, you only need a few minutes of unprotected sunlight exposure for adequate vitamin D levels, but if you live in a cold climate, taking supplements may be your best option in the winter months.
11. Eat Real Food
Visit any grocery store, and most of the aisles are full of packaged ultra-processed food filled with added sugar, high salt levels, saturated fats, and a list of ingredients you’ve probably never heard of. If you want to be healthy, the best step you can take is to eat real food and prepare meals from scratch from whole food ingredients.
12. Take The Stairs
Something as simple as always taking the stairs can help to improve your fitness. Give it a try! For extra benefit, try bounding up the stairs just like you used to as a child.
13. Make Half Your Plate Veggies
Veggies are packed full of nutrients and low in calories. Make them a priority for your diet by making sure half your plate is full of vegetable goodness.
14. Stand Up Every 30 Minutes
If you work at a desk (or spend a lot of time couch surfing), your glutes will thank you for this one. Stand up every 30 minutes and have a short walkabout.
15. Practice A Positive Mindset
The power of the mind is something we still know very little about, but having a positive mindset can make a lot of stuff seem better. Celebrate the good things in your life and practice positive self-talk. Become your best fan!
16. Take A Walk Around The Block
If I get to the end of the day without exercising, I always feel better after a short walk around the block. A 10-minute walk is always better than no exercise. You’ll unwind after your day and sleep better.
17. Always Have A Healthy Snack To Hand
Temptation is everywhere when you’re trying to adopt a healthy eating habit. It’s hard to hold out when there’s a high-fat, high-sugar snack eyeballing you and saying eat me. The best defense is anticipation: Carry a healthy snack with you at all times, and you’ll always have something nutritious and filling to eat when you’re hungry.
18. Aim For Consistency
A small amount of exercise every day is far more effective than going all out once a week. Aim for consistent training.
19. Eat Probiotic Foods Daily
Probiotic foods such as yogurt, sauerkraut, pickles, and miso can help keep your gut healthy, improving digestion and supporting the immune system. Aim to add these fermented foods to your daily diet.
20. Sweat Every Day
Sweating every day is good for your pores and will give your metabolism a boost. If you’re short of time, just a 10-15 minute HIIT workout will get your heart rate pumping!
21. Make Meal Prep Part Of Your Life.
Meal prep isn’t just about time-saving. It’s also about having a healthy food choice ready to heat up in the fridge when you’re too tired to cook a meal from scratch. Meal prep and you’ll have no excuse to order a takeaway.
22. Track Your Fitness
Instead of just assuming you’re getting enough exercise, track your fitness. Count your daily steps using your phone or a fitness tracker, and use a fitness planner to record your exercise sessions.
23. Practice Gratitude
Spend a few minutes every day noting the things you’re most grateful for. When you practice gratitude, it helps you put your daily concerns into perspective. It can be a good way to unwind at the end of the day.
24. Switch Off Distractions
Being constantly plugged into social media can wreak havoc with your mental health. Switch off or mute non-essential notifications. You can have one big catch-up when it suits you.
25. Eat When You’re Hungry
This can be a hard one to crack as our bodies often send out confusing signals, often confusing thirst or stress with hunger. One trick is to pause before you eat. Drink a glass of water to make sure you’re not thirsty, and identify any external influences causing your stress levels to rise.
26. Have A Goal
A big goal will motivate you to make changes for the better. Make sure it’s something that excites you, and break down your big goal into smaller targets to help you stay on track.
27. Do Something Fun Every Week
Aiming to be healthier doesn’t mean you can’t have any fun. Come up with a fun idea that doesn’t break your health and fitness commitments, and you’ll find your life expanding with endless possibilities.
28. Use Smaller Plates
This is such an easy one to implement. Use smaller plates, and you’ll automatically eat less. You can always go back for seconds if you’re genuinely still hungry.
29. Quit Added Sugar
The modern diet is full of added sugar. Too much sugar in your diet is associated with a long list of health issues. Quit added sugar and discover how much better life is without constant blood sugar crashes.
30. Take Pride In Your Appearance
This isn’t about dressing for other people; when you take pride in your appearance, it will make you feel good about yourself. Steeping out the door, knowing you look your best, will put a positive spin on your day.
31. Plan An Adventure
If your day-to-day life feels mundane, spice it up with a mini adventure. Take a trip to somewhere you’ve never been before, or do something different where you live. It doesn’t need to cost money: it could be a mini journey on foot or a visit to a free attraction. Use your imagination, and you’ll be surprised how much fun you can have on a tiny budget.
32. Grow Something
There’s something about watching a tiny plant grow that’s life-affirming, and a few plants will brighten even the smallest of apartments.
33. Start Your Day With A Healthy Breakfast
Eat a healthy breakfast, and you’re more likely to make good food choices for the rest of the day. Healthy doesn’t mean boring, and if you’re busy during the week, try out these breakfast meal prep ideas to grab and go!
34. Spend Time in Nature
A disconnect with nature affects our mental well-being. Try to spend some time outdoors in nature every day. Being amongst trees in a local park or taking a walk along a local river bank is a wonderful way to de-stress.
35. Keep A Journal
One of the best wellness tips is keeping a daily journal. Use one to focus on the good things in your life and build positivity and purpose.
36. Nurture Your Friendships
Friends will come and go as you pass through the different stages of your life, but the good ones need to be nurtured. You may be busy or at different life stages, but make an effort to keep in touch with the friends who are really important to you.
37. Find Your Support Group
You don’t need to make positive changes on your own. Many of these wellness tips are easier to keep up if you surround yourself with like-minded, supportive family and friends.
Seek out people to exercise with, friends who won’t talk you into abandoning your healthier eating habits, and like-minded souls for mini adventures. Remember, positive change happens one small step at a time!