Plumbline's Simple Tips Towards a Healthier You

Plumbline Helps With Healthier Lifestyles

You always hear about needing to live a healthy life, but exactly what does that mean, what does it entail? In general, to be healthy means you don’t smoke, your weight is within a healthy range, you eat well, and you exercise. While it may sound simple, it can be tough to implement.

Rather than trying to change your entire life in one day, and eventually burning out, a better idea is to gradually make smaller changes in your life – maybe eat an extra piece of fruit today, drink an extra glass of water in the morning, etc. These simple changes can be a great start towards a healthier you.

Exercise
Lack of activity is a big problem in America. While everyone knows that exercise and activity is healthy, and that we should be doing it, it still tends to be avoided or overlooked on a daily basis. Perhaps because we are used to our current sedentary lifestyle or because we figure that if we’re not going to go all out with a rigorous workout regimen, that it’s not worth it. This is not true. In reality, any sort of physical movement we can do is better for us than sitting on the couch doing nothing. Even non-exercise activities such as housework, gardening, and taking a quick walk can make a big difference.
By making the effort to incorporate more movement and activity into your day, you will:
• Decrease your chances of osteoporosis
• Decrease depression and anxiety
• Lower your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and strokes
• Lower your stress level
• Reduce the likelihood of fractures
• Improve your mental health and day to day mood
• Improve your flexibility
• Increase your body’s range of movement
• Increase the stability of your joints
• Increase your self esteem
• Sustain your bone mass
• Improve your memory

Clearly, even small changes in your level of activity can make a big difference in your life.
Simple Ways to Increase Your Daily Activity
Try to incorporate a little more movement and activity into your life every day. If you’re not quite ready for a set “work out regimen”, start with some of the following activities, as every little bit you can do will help you towards your goal of a healthy lifestyle.

• Turn off the TV. At least one time a week, just turn the TV off. Force yourself to find an alternative activity, something a little more physical. Play games with the family, take a walk with the kids, pretty much anything you can think of will be more active and healthier than watching TV.
   
• Walk. Look for opportunities to walk more. Park further away from the entrance so you have farther to walk, take the stairs instead of the elevator, take a quick walk around the block when you go outside to get the mail, take our dog out on his leash one extra time every day, walk on the treadmill for 10 minutes before work in the morning. There are endless opportunities to walk more often, just be more aware of them, and start to take advantage of them.
   
• Do Chores. Work in the yard – garden, rake, even shovel the snow. Sweep the floor, vacuum, etc. These may seem like a far cry from exercise, and while they are not forms of rigorous exercise, they will keep you moving and keep you active.
   
• Walk While You Talk. Every time you’re talking on the phone, get up and pace around the house, or clean up the house. Moving around while you’re chatting on the phone is a great way to get in some extra activity without even being aware of it.
   
• Know Your Level of Activity. Get familiar with what you are currently doing in your life that is active. Sit down and make a quick list of all the “activities” you do on a typical day. If you find that the bulk of your time is spent doing sedentary things, plan ways to incorporate more activity. Even while you are sitting at your desk at work, make a point to get up once every hour or two to stretch or take a quick walk.

Eat Healthy
Eating well is an important component of living a healthy lifestyle. A healthy diet can help you manage your weight, and improve the overall quality of your life. If making a large lifestyle change is intimidating, start small, incorporating the following tips:

• Eat more fruit. Grab an apple or a banana to bring with you to work, add fruit to your cereals, your salads, and even to your dinner.
   
• Eat more veggies. You don’t need to eat a head of broccoli to sneak some extra veggies into your diet. You can add them into meals you are already eating – add an extra tomato to your sandwich, include peppers on your pizza, even add some extra veggies to your pasta sauce.
   
• Use low fat salad dressing. If you are using regular salad dressing, switching to light or fat free will shave a lot of calories off your daily intake.
   
• Avoid whole milk and regular yogurt. Instead, buy skim milk and fat free yogurt. These simple changes can add up to a lot of calories saved.
   
• Be conscious of nutritional content when you shop. Instead of just buying your favorite brand of a product, look at the labels, and buy the healthiest option available.

Remember that living a healthy lifestyle does not have to mean doing a complete overhaul on your current lifestyle. Incorporate subtle changes here and there, and you will be much more successful at maintaining your health.
 

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