I want to be healthier! But… where do I start?
By now you’ve probably seen the term ”healthy lifestyle” across half a dozen health websites and blogs such as my own, and probably are thinking, how many pizzas can I eat before I consider my lifestyle to be unhealthy? If you are not wondering that, good for you! But you know what, living a healthy lifestyle is not all about the food you eat. By any means, food does play a very important role in your health and let’s be honest if pizza is a part of your regular eating habits, you may need to re-evaluate your diet. However, you should also be taking care of your stress levels, hydrating, getting proper amounts of good quality sleep, exercising, and going outside to get some fresh air and catching some rays! Changing your lifestyle habits for the better can be difficult at first, but it is worth it! What they are is basically the first steps to better health no matter what your situation is.
1. Drink more water: So let’s start by talking hydration. The human body is composed of about 60% of water, found in your blood and intracellular liquids. Throughout the day the average adult loses approximately 2 litres a day which need to be replenished. 2 litres of water might seem like a lot to people who don’t currently drink more than a glass a day, but I promise you if you increase your intake gradually your body will thank you for it. There is a certain way to drink water as well, and I don’t mean swilling it around in a wine glass. Although, you may want to take the time to swill it around in your mouth. Doing this prepares your body to absorb liquid more efficiently and a certain percentage already gets absorbed through your mouth. In addition to this it forces you to slow down, because don’t kid yourself it is possible to drink too much water too fast, in fact it can be fatal. As there is a time and a place for most things, there is a time to drink water (we don’t worry too much about the place though). As much as possible you want to distance your water intake from your meals. “But why??” you might lament. Mostly because your digestive system is a simple creature, it works better when there are fewer things going through it. What I mean is the water is better absorbed when it is not mish-mashed with a bunch of food. It can also dilute the gastric juices and interfere with the digestive process as well as their absorption. So my trick number one: start carrying a reusable water bottle with you and sip it throughout the day. Try prioritizing filtered water when you can, because no one likes the taste of city tap water.
2. Manage your stress:
Next up, let’s talk about STRESS. You’ve probably heard this one to death, and yet I still feel like it is not a well understood topic. Unless you are a zen master, you probably a part of the larger population that experiences stress on a daily basis. Now you’re probably thinking ”Pfft I’m not that stressed, it’s not like I’m being chased by a bear or anything.” Well I’ve got news for you friends, you may not be chased by a bear (and if you are, stress might actually save your life), but think about how you feel at work. Oup, the boss just gave you an extra project to finish before the end of the week, oup a customer is losing it at you, oup the phones are ringing and you can’t keep up. What about when you’re driving to and from work? Or taking public transit? The construction, the detours, the traffic, the “un incident cause un ralentissement de service sur l’ensemble du reseau.” Ok, maybe that last one was a bit too specific to Montreal, but I think you get the picture. And let’s not forget when you get home, having to cook for your family, having to study, do projects, drive the kids places, etc. etc. My point is, we’re no longer being chased by litteral bears anymore, the bears are hidden, lurking around every corner in our lives, and manifesting as small constant problems and frustrations. So, all these mini stress bombs can wreak havoc on our health. Which is why it is so important to manage that stress properly. So what can you do? For starters, breathe. Just stop, stop what you’re doing, stop reading this for a minute, and pay attention to your breath. Are you breathing in deeply? Are you breathing in through your nose and filling your lungs to their full extent, and exhaling through your mouth all the way? Probably not, I wasn’t even doing it. That’s your first step, now adjust your posture, and fill your belly with air, and up through the chest. Don’t forget to exhale. Now why don’t you go ahead close your eyes, do that a few times, and try to focus your mind only on the air flow entering and exiting your body.
3. Sleep better :
Once you’ve mastered the art of breathing, we can move on to learning the art of sleeping. Sleep, by the way, is also implicated in stress management. In a perfect world we would go to sleep when the sun goes down and wake up when the sun comes up. I’m sure many of you would agree with me on that in the winter time. Unfortunately, our busy lives no longer match the natural cycles so we need to implement our own routines. Ideally, one should try to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up the same time every morning. This will allow you to have a proper sleep cycle and get the proper amount of sleep. The average adult needs between 7 and 9 hours of sleep, and studies have shown that women tend to need more sleep than men (just saying). This means however, around 8 hours of good quality, uninterrupted sleep. So, what can we do to optimize sleep? Here are your tricks: No caffeine in the afternoon, avoid doing physical exercise late in the evening, try and maintain a regular sleep schedule, and avoid looking at screens 2 hours before bedtime as this can delay your sleep cycle!
4. Get active:
Now for that word that everyone hates: Exercise! That’s right folks, I too am one of those people who will pester you with how important it is to get up and get moving. There is a saying that gets repeated a lot at my school which I’ve grown rather fond of using: Sitting is the new smoking. It seems dramatic when you first hear it, but it is in fact accurate. There are increasing amounts of studies showing the link between inactivity and the development of several diseases. At the very least people should be walking or doing some form of exercise for 30 minutes a day. Though I would strongly encourage to add on 3 hours per week of moderate to intense exercise if you have the capabilities to do so. I realize if you live a busy life it can be difficult to find the time to fit in exercise. So here are your tips: Find some stairs at work or through commute, go up and down a few times, walk or bike to work if you can, or high intensity interval training (HIIT) can be a good option pretty much anywhere (a series of intense exercises performed in a short period of time several times a day). In terms of motivation it can help if you have a training partner whether it be your spouse, a friend, or even your kids or your dog! So what are you waiting for? Start doing those chair dips while you read the rest of this blog!
5. Go outside :
Finally we come to the nature element. I can already hear the sighs of apprehension followed by a ”Here we go with the hippy-dippy-tree-hugging-stuff.” Well you know what my friends? Call it what you will but the fact is we wouldn’t exist without our natural environment sustaining us. We depend on nature for our very existence. So you may want to spend more time outside and pay more attention to your own carbon footprint. But I understand if you’re just here for your health facts so here we are: Go get some sun! Did you know that people living in the northern latitudes are in fact deficient in vitamin D during winter time? While us Canadians do have to supplement in the winter time, in the summer take advantage of the sun! It’s handing out free vitamin D just for you! (Well not really, the UV rays cause our skin to create our own Vitamin D in our bodies, but you get what I’m saying.) The sun is not the only thing that’s important out there though, it is also important that our bodies get access to fresh air. This is especially important for city folk who are constantly confronted with exhaust fumes from the streets and general city pollution. Our lungs need a break too sometimes, if you can, go spend some time in a forest, or at least in a park. In addition, there have been several recent studies showing that spending more time outdoors, in forests can help reduce stress. So don’t be ashamed, embrace your inner hippy and go hug some trees!
6. Eat better :
I’m going to talk about food last here, again not because it is unimportant, simply because I will be writing more detailed articles at length on this topic. So I’m going to jump straight to the simple tips here: Reduce your intake of carbs, increase your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, get enough quality protein, always opt for fresh, unrefined, organic, whole foods. In other words, put away the Kraft Dinner, steer clear from fast foods, and head for your local farmer’s market.
These are just a few simple tips outlined here, but if you start including these tips in your daily lives I can assure you, you will already be doing your body a favour and are the first steps to better health.