There is a lot of information online about what is most important to our health. We are bombarded by fad diets, specific exercise regimes, “biohacking”, and lots of other noise that shouldn’t be our top priority.
As we get older, it becomes more important to be consistent, not drastic.
(Arguably; drastic isn’t really for anyone)
If you are just starting to focus on your health, these five health priorities will be in your best interest to focus on.
Daily movement
This doesn’t need to look any certain way. If we can adjust our 4 hours on the couch to include 1 hour outside instead, then we’d be making progress. You don’t need to train for a marathon, power lift 500 pounds, or scale mountains. This daily movement can be anything that you enjoy. As we expand our comfort zone of movement, we can start to add in new things. Focusing on moving is the first step.
Add in two nutritious foods daily
Small goals help us adhere to lifestyle changes significantly more so than anything drastic. Instead of thinking about what to cut out, think about what you can add in. Instead of “I won’t eat any sugar this week” try “I will try a new vegetable today” or “I will eat an extra serving of veggies today”. Not only is this more achievable, but it also helps to build our confidence and self-efficacy.
Improve sleep health
Oftentimes our physical health suffers when we’re not sleeping enough. This may be from going to bed late, poor sleep quality, or constant screen use before bed. Try unplugging before going to bed, incorporating a relaxing evening ritual, and keeping your phone away from your bed. Poor sleep impacts our physical health, hunger hormones, and mental health so this can be a good variable to focus on.
Reduce stress
Stress has a chronic impact on our health. Specifically, through inflammation and impacts on our heart health. This is one reason why spending all our time and energy on following a stressful diet can actual be worse for our health. If you’re noticing that you are stressed often, perhaps it is time to work on nervous system regulation. We can achieve this through breathing exercises, getting outside, & spending time with people we enjoy.
Eat at least three meals daily
Eating consistently is one of the largest factors for success and achieving all the other priories on this list. If we aren’t eating consistently, then it is harder to incorporate movement, eat nutritious foods, sleep well, and manage stress. Often when learning how to improve our health, we may think “eat as little as possible”. This is far from the truth. You need to understand how much YOU need and eat consistently throughout the day to nurture a healthy metabolism. If this sounds difficult, make sure you schedule a free call to learn how we can achieve this together.
If you want to focus on improving your health this week, then let’s start with these five variables.
If you need individualized help to reach your goals, then let’s set up a time to chat more about that! Do that here.
