5 Daily Habits for a Healthier Life
Health is wealth.
And the state of your life is a reflection of your daily habits.
Because we often take our health for granted. And only implement healthy habits when we’re older or when someone we love isn’t in well health.
Everyone wants to ‘look’ healthy. However, not enough of us are taking the steps to create a healthy body from the inside out.
When summer is coming, or we’ve got a big event or beach vacation coming up, THEN we get in the gym to get our ‘beach bodies’ on.
That’s when you might start looking for that quick fix that we all know just doesn’t exist. But for many, until then working out and eating right is an afterthought.
I want you to take a moment. Think back to what you’ve done all day since waking up this morning. Has any of it made you a better, healthier individual?
If instead, if all you did this today was: rollover, grab your phone, check your emails, start scrolling through social media, head to work or school, and now your back in bed, was that’s a healthy day?
Nope!
You can and should do better. Your future self will look back and thank you. Don’t say to yourself, “I don’t have enough time,” that excuse is not valid anymore and is outdated. We all have the same 24 hours each day.
If something is important to you, you’ll make time for it. Just like you make time for making your money each day, you can make time for your health as well.
I’ve even made it easy for you by making a list of five key things you can do daily to live a healthier, fulfilling life. Most of it can even be done before you head out to work or school in the morning.
So, with that, here are 5 daily habits to improve life and live healthier.
#1 Start by Making Sure You Get Enough Sleep
Of all the daily habits to improve your life, this is THE most important.
When you wake up in the morning you should take note of how your body feels. If you got enough sleep you shouldn’t have a hard time getting up.
Most of us feel or perform best when we’ve gotten at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep the night before.
Others can operate fine with less but I know for me I need at least 5 hours or I’m gonna be one cranky, yawning guy. I might even need a nap to get me through the day.
So, let’s start living healthier lives by getting enough sleep. It’s so so important for your health. Sleep is when your body recovers and does all the scientific things you learned about in school. Which, by now you have probably forgotten like me.
Sleep is critical to life.
Just like eating, breathing, peeing and pooping are. Science has even shown that people who sleep less at night gain more weight than those who get more shut-eye.
Your daily habits tell a story. What does yours say and read like right now?
#2 Drink a Glass of Water In The Morning
If you wake up and drink a glass of water first thing in the morning, you’re already well on your way to being a healthier you.
More than half the human body is water. Plus, it doesn’t take that long to pour yourself a glass or grab a bottle.
There are many benefits of drinking water in the morning. You’ll flush your system out, refresh your mind, reduce toxins that have built up overnight, and keep your body and skin feeling healthy.
The fastest and easiest way to check if you are hydrated and drinking enough water is the color of your urine.
Make checking the color of your urine one of your daily habits.
If it is clear/silvery then it means you’re hydrated. Golden yellow or dark urine means you are not hydrated enough and better go and hydrate. Try and drink eight glasses or two liters of water each day.
#3 Have a Green Smoothie or Juice in The Morning
Hate eating your vegetables?
No problem, combine them with some of your favorite fruits and blend or juice them together to get your greens in for the day.
Green juice is also all-natural and doesn’t come will all the fake ingredients and sweeteners like the ones you’ll find in stores.
It’s a great way to absorb all the essential vitamins and minerals you need throughout your day. Make drinking green juice one of your daily habits.
Plus, you can easily modify the ingredients that are used to suit your taste preferences.
Here are three quick recipes you can easily make at home to jumpstart your day:
- Try my personal favorite for breakfast: maca powder, hemp protein, peanut butter, a small handful of frozen fruit (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries), cinnamon, almond milk, water and acai juice.
- Or combine a green leafy vegetable of your choice like kale with fruits, herbs, water, and spinach.
- For an even lighter drink combine apples, pineapple juice, celery, and lettuce.
Along with exercise, which we’ll discuss next, drinking some green juice in the morning can reduce your craving throughout the day and considerably reduce your weight.
Don’t be surprised when you have more energy and just feel better during the day because of it.
#4 Exercise!!! Workout, Go For a Run, Walk or Swim
Movement is life.
And moving should be one of your daily habits. It doesn’t matter how you get your exercise in, what matters most is consistency and making time to exercise each day.
There should be no excuses whatsoever.
I could go on and on about the benefits of regular exercise but I don’t want to bore you. I’m sure you’ve heard many of them before.
Follow the Nike slogan and “Just Do It.” You’ll feel so much better afterward and I have never heard someone say they regretted doing exercise after it was over. In fact, you’ll feel like you’ve conquered the world and won the day afterward.
Find a way by any means necessary. Get up earlier if you have to or knock it out right after work.
Listen to your favorite music, podcast, or catch up on one of your favorite books, and before you know it, it’ll be over. It also helps if you only do workouts and exercises you love and ignore the ones you don’t like as much.
One of my favorite ways to get some extra exercise in and get stronger is picking one or two muscle groups I’m weak in.
I’ll then have a workout pre-planned for about 10 minutes that target those muscles.
You should be able to get at least 3 sets of each exercise in before the 10 minutes is up.
As soon as you begin, it’s pretty much already over. You can do this right when you wake up or a few hours before going to bed each night and switch it up every week or two.
#5 Meditate Once a Day and Get Some Sun
People from all over the world benefit from meditation every day. It’s more popular in eastern culture but it’s also starting to spread fast in western culture. Not everyone knows about the wonderful benefits. Meditation leads to increased relaxation, decreased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Even if it’s just 5 to 10 minutes in the morning or at night, meditation can lead to a healthier life. Focus on your breathing and stop thinking.
Release any expectations or thoughts you might have going on in your head; about your day, money, life, kids, the weekend, what’s for dinner. As long as you feel better after a meditation session, no need to worry, you’re probably doing it right.
Meditation is a large subject to cover but if you try it and make it a daily habit it will clear your mind and change your life. Just give it a try, do some research, and learn more to figure out what works best for you.
Along with meditation, you should make sure you get enough sun and fresh air each day. Your body needs Vitamin D and can synthesize it from the sun.
Thus, getting enough sunlight is one of the easiest ways you can prevent a Vitamin D deficiency.
But, I know this can sometimes be hard especially if it’s winter and you live in a very cold place.
When I wake up I like to get outside and go for morning jogs. This also allows me to take in some beautiful scenery and connect with nature. It’s become one of my daily habits.
I can hear the birds chirp, watch the squirrels run around and even listen to the neighborhood dogs bark at me.
Even Though This is a Small List of Daily Habits, The Benefits Are Huge.
I hope it helps you live a healthier life and motivates you to make a change for the better. I didn’t always have daily routines or habits besides brushing my teeth and making my bed but since I have implemented these, my life has improved noticeably.
Working, going to school, playing video games, watching tv, or browsing around on Netflix all day is not healthy.
Please modify and make your own checklists and routines if you need them.
Spread the knowledge and stay healthy! Your loved ones will thank you.
We’ll be sharing more tips and strategies so don’t forget to subscribe and receive updates about new posts. And if you want to know more about your daily habits, here’s a great article.
One Love! – Riley