Be Active
Physical activity plays a critical role in keeping the body healthy. Exercise helps control body weight, aids in the removal of toxins, promotes a healthy immune system, maintains healthy bones, muscles, and joints, reduces the risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes, cancers and heart disease, promotes psychological well-being, and reduces the risk of premature death. It also promotes positive thinking, creates better daily movement, manages stress, improves mood, prevents lethargy, provides energy, and increases daily productivity and performance.
Make it a daily challenge to find ways to move your body. Create a plan to fit exercise into daily life. Set aside time for a workout, promote physical wellness programs in the workplace (like yoga), go for a daily walk, or at the least create more movement just in your daily routine. Get your blood flowing and your muscles moving. Try to include activities that raise breathing and heart rate and strengthen muscles. Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator, walk to the store, window shop at the mall, walk and talk with friends instead of meeting for a meal, or pace while talking on the phone or brushing teeth. At the office, leave your desk and visit your co-worker instead of sending an email, get up and take a short walk every 30 minutes, stretch at your desk, or create a quick energy boost and run up and down the stairs.
Drink Water
Drink a glass of water every morning and then follow up with consistent intake of water throughout the day. A glass of water in the morning rejuvenates cells by supplying oxygen and water depleted during sleep. Eight glasses of water a day is needed to maintain body function. Water is essential to hydrate, eliminate toxins, cleanse, and transport nutrients. Joints need water to stay in motion. Vital organs such as the heart, brain, kidney, and liver, need water to properly work. Water also plays a vital role in respiration which is the body's means of generating energy. Consistent water intake and proper body function keeps the body energized and reduces lethargy.
Eat Healthy
Make healthy food choices. Limit foods and drinks high in calories, sugar, salt, fat, and alcohol. Maintain a balanced diet. Eat foods that are rich in vitamins A, B, B-6, C, E, zinc, and folic acid. Choose a good variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains everyday. Eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day as part of a healthy diet. Fruits and vegetables are the best natural sources of vitamins, nutrients, sugars and antioxidants required by the body to enhance the immune system, fight disease, reduce the risk of cancers, improve memory, promote heart health, and reduce the signs of aging. Feed your body throughout your day to maintain healthy metabolism and boost energy. Protein keeps your energy up, and the fat makes energy last. Nuts and low-fat yogurt are healthy choices that can boost energy and productivity. Also incorporate fruits and vegetables as snacks to get them into your diet and provide good nutrients that can be utilized for a productiuve day. Consume fibre in your diet and drink water to hydrate and avoid constipation. Constipation allows toxins from the bowel to be reabsorbed into the body, potentially leading to disease.
Sleep
It is important to be well-rested and get enough sleep. 7-10 hours of quality sleep is essential for physical and emotional well-being and health. Sleep has been proven to have a direct impact on memory, alertness, energy, reducing stress, strengthening the immune system, and preventing disease. Research indicates that sleep can prevent heath conditions such as hypertension, congestive heart failure, anxiety, depression, and obesity. Overall quality of life and daily performance impoves with adequate sleep.
Breath
Breath plays a vital role in health and happiness. Breathing oxygenates every cell of the body including the brain and all vital organs, stimulates the digestive process, and improves fitness and mental performance. It is important to breath deep and breath correctly. Insufficient oxygen allows the body to become susceptible to health problems. Breathing incorrectly can produce tension, exhaustion, vocal strain, interfere with athletic activity, and encourage aches and illnesses. Breathing correctly, however reduces tension and stress, improves energy, and promotes relaxation.
Make a concious effort to notice the movement of your breath during daily activities. Breath deeply and remember not to hold your breath. Let your breath engage and fill every part of your body, especially your belly, back, spine and chest. When possible inhale and exhale only through your nose. Perform deep breathing regularly throughout the day during daily activites such as sitting at your desk or driving the car. Utilize the breath to eliminate stress when you notice it. Inhale and count up to 5 seconds, hold it for a few seconds, and release slowly, feel the difference breath can make in the body.
Relax and Reduce Stess
Stress is a result of anxiety and results in mental and physical exhaustion. Even low levels of stress will erode energy levels and health. Reduce stress by incorporating relaxation activities into each day. Any activity that facilitates relaxation will reduce tension and increase energy. Take the time to relax. Relaxation is the key to relieving stress. More relaxation and less stress will boost the immune system, lower blood pressure and cholesterol, and bring relief to chronic pain. It will also reduce common health problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and many other age-related dieseases.
Smile and Laugh
Smiles and laughter can be a powerful resource for health and well-being. Humor lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, reduces stress, alleviates pain and keeps you grounded, focused, and alert. The benefits for physical, mental, and social health are countless.
Physical health benefits include increased immunity, reduction of stress hormones,relief of physical tension, increased energy, relaxation of muscles, reduction of pain and prevention of heart disease. Laughter also protects the heart, improving the function of blood vessels and increasing blood flow to protect against heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.
Mental health benefits include reduction of anxiety and fear, stress relief, improvement of mood. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, to promote an overall sense of well-being and temporarily relieve pain. Humor helps you keep a positive, optimistic outlook through difficult situations, disappointments, and loss.
Social health benefits include enhanced relationships, group bonding, teamwork, and difusion of conflict. Humor and playful communication strengthen relationships by triggering positive feelings and fostering emotional connection. When we laugh with one another, a positive bond is created. This bond acts as a strong buffer against stress, disagreements, and disappointment. Mutual laughter and play are an essential component of strong, healthy relationships. By making a conscious effort to incorporate more humor and play into your daily interactions, you can improve the quality of love relationships as well as connections with co-workers, family members, and friends.
Bring more smiles and laughter into your life. Practice smiling when you look at someone or see something even mildly pleasing. Set aside special times to seek out humor and laughter, as you might with working out or finding time for relaxation. Bring humor into conversations. Spend time with fun, playful people and when you hear laughter, move toward it.
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