How healthy are you? Do you have a
healthy diet? Do you exercise regularly? Do you drink at least 8 glasses of
water a day? Do you get enough sleep every day? Our body is our temple, and we
need to take care of it to have a healthy life. Let's see what we should do to
get a healthy life.
1. Drink more water. Most of us actually
don’t drink enough water every day. Water is essential for our body to function
– Do you know over 60% of our body is made up of water? Water is needed to
carry out our body functions, remove waste and carry nutrients and oxygen
around our body. Since we lose water every day through urine, bowel movements,
perspiration and breathing, we need to replenish our water intake.
The amount of water we need is
dependent on various factors such as the humidity, our physical activity, and
your weight, but generally we need 2.7 - 3.7 litres of water intake! Since
food intake contributes about 20% of our fluid intake, that means we need
to drink about 2.0-3.0 litres of water, or about 8-10 glasses (now you know how
the 8 glasses recommendation came about!). One way to tell if you’re hydrated –
your urine should be colorless or slightly yellow. If it’s not, you’re not
getting enough water! Other signs include: Dry lips, dry mouth and little
urination. Go get some water first before you continue this article!
2. Get enough sleep.
When you don’t rest well, you compensate by eating more. Usually it’s junk
food. Get enough rest and you don’t need to snack to stay awake. Also, lack of
sleep causes premature aging, and you wouldn’t want that.
3. Exercise. Not just a few times a week, but
every day. Movement is life. Research has shown that exercising daily brings
tremendous benefits to our health, including increase of life span, lowering of
risk of diseases, higher bone density and weight loss. Increase activity in
your life. Choose walking over transport for close distances. Climb the stairs
instead of taking the lift. Join some aerobics classes. Take up a sport of your
liking.
4. Eat more fruits. This is for the vegetables-hater.
Fruits are a plethora of vitamins and minerals. Do you know that
oranges offer more health benefits than Vitamin C pills? Taking in synthetic
supplements are not the same as consuming the foods direct from nature. So, you
don't have to expend lots of money to find the extra vitamins pills. Fill
your palate with these 10 most nutritious fruits: Watermelon, Apricots,
Avocado, Apple, Cantaloupe, Grapefruit, Kiwi, Guava, Papaya, Strawberries.
5. Prepare your meals.
Lately I’m beginning to appreciate the value of preparing my own meals. When
you prepare your meals, you control what goes into them. No more being in a
dilemma between eating healthy and choosing between the sub-optimal food
choices. Get some quality kitchen equipment – these will be your best
investments ever. I bought my blender 3 years ago and it’s been such a breeze
making my own fruit juices!
6. Breathe. Deeply.
Oxygen is a vital source of life. You may know how to breathe, but are you
breathing properly? Most of us don’t breathe properly – we take only shallow
breathes and breathe to 1/3 of our lung capacity. Athletes are coached proper
breathing techniques to get their best performance. A full breath is one where
your lungs are completely filled, your abdomen expands and there’s minimum
movement in your shoulders.
7. Bring a water bottle
when you go out. That way, you can replenish your
fluids whenever you want to. It saves you money as well and you don’t need to
subject yourself to poor alternatives like soda, which increases your fluid
outtake instead
8. Purge negativity from
yourself. You don’t need negativity from yourself either. Listen
in on the thoughts that come up in your mind and get rid of the negative
thoughts you hear. A lot of eating happens because one feels unhappy, so by
staying in a positive, up state by yourself, you cut out that unhealthy
dependence on food to be happy.
9. Live a life with purpose. Positive
health starts from within! Are you living a life of meaning? Are you living in
line with your purpose? After I started living in line with my purpose 2 years
ago, I’ve never ever been happier. And you can experience that too.
10. Love yourself. Always
be honest with yourself. Remember, if you don't love your own self, who will??
There's some of the tips I've shared with you. What if you
go and try it? I'm sure it will not disappoint you! Good luck!
