Little changings in your life can give can give you big health benefits
27th November 2024
Quit smoking. Lose 20 pounds. Join a gym and start exercising every day.
While we should always strive to accomplish these types of health goals, the road to better health doesn’t always have to mean making huge leaps.
There are also many smaller steps you can take that will help improve your overall health and quality of life — and because they’re things you can easily incorporate into your routine, they’ll be easy to maintain for the long haul. Even if you have only a few minutes to spare, you can use that time to improve your well-being.
Try incorporating the following activities and strategies into your day. When these simple steps become habits, they can add up to a big positive effect on your overall health.
1. Enjoy de-stressing.
Experts recommend regular exercise, meditation, and breathing techniques to reduce stress. But even something as simple — and enjoyable — as listening to soothing music, reading a good book, soaking in a hot tub, or playing with your pet can help you relax.
That’s advice you should take to heart because prolonged stress can cause or exacerbate a number of health problems, including heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, depression, ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, migraines, and obesity.
Don’t have a lot of time? Don’t let that stress you out. As with exercise, even brief periods of relaxation are beneficial.
Spending even 10 minutes at a time doing something you enjoy can go a long way toward beating the stressors of everyday life. Just reading one chapter or taking your dog for a few laps around the block will help you feel calmer, more refreshed, and more energized.
If you can’t take a full break from whatever you’re doing, try simply taking a few slow, deep breaths at that moment. When you slow down your breathing, it helps you relax. This relaxation response releases body chemicals that relieve stress and may improve immune function.
Deep breathing can also lower your resting heart rate. People with lower resting heart rates are typically in better physical condition than those with higher rates.
2. Put away the salt.
A saltshaker on the dining table makes it all too easy to consume excess salt, which can lead to high blood pressure. So put the shaker in a cabinet or pantry and bring it out only when you’re cooking.
It’s also a good idea to taste your food before you salt it. You may find it doesn’t need more.
You can also try spicing up your food with lemon or lime juice, garlic, red pepper flakes, herbs, or a salt-free seasoning blend. Stock your fridge and pantry with your favorite fresh and dried herbs so you’ll always have them on hand to flavor your foods.
3. Get to bed earlier.
Most of us don’t get the seven or more hours of sleep adults to need.
Over time, a shortage of shut-eye can raise your risk of a heart attack or stroke — regardless of your age, weight, or exercise habits.
If you’re consistently sleep-deprived, going to bed even 15 minutes earlier every night could help. Also, set a regular sleep and wake schedule, and stick to it — even on days off.
4. Have a glass of red wine.
Studies have shown that the powerful antioxidants found in red wine protect against heart disease, colon cancer, anxiety, and depression. So unless there is a medical reason why you shouldn’t imbibe, go ahead and enjoy that glass of merlot with your nightly meal — you can even toast to your good health.
But drink in moderation. Just as a small amount of red wine has health benefits, too much alcohol — even red wine — can cause a variety of health problems, including liver and kidney disease and cancer.
Women, in particular, need to be careful about alcohol consumption. They are at a higher overall risk of liver problems than men, so they are more likely to experience liver problems from smaller amounts of alcohol.
For a healthy man, two drinks a day is not likely to do harm; women, on the other hand, should limit themselves to one daily alcoholic beverage.
5. Make a few dietary substitutions.
- Swap white bread, rice, crackers, and pasta for healthier whole-grain versions.
- Use skinless chicken and turkey in your recipes instead of skin-on, and leaner cuts of other meats such as beef or pork.
- Replace one sugary drink (soda, juice, etc.) each day with a tall glass of water.
- If you get hungry between meals, snack on a handful of almonds or cashews, a piece of whole fruit, or carrot sticks dipped in hummus rather than reaching for candy bars or potato chips.
In addition, try incorporating an extra serving of nonstarchy vegetables into your daily diet.
Want a snack? Munch on a carrot instead of a cookie. Making dinner for your family? Serve broccoli or spinach as a side dish instead of mashed potatoes. Add green peas to your brown rice, or slices of red or yellow pepper to your sandwich.
It’s no secret that vegetables — especially dark, leafy greens — are good for you. But there’s another benefit to packing more veggies into your daily diet: They’re rich in fiber and contain lots of water, so they’ll leave you full and satisfied without a lot of calories and fat.
There are plenty of great recipes in cookbooks and online — including on RUSH’s content hub — for tasty yet healthful veggie dishes.
