My Top 5 Tips to Living a Healthy Lifestyle….
Fitness and nutrition have been a passion of mine for the past 15+ years! In fact, I feel that educating myself about what it truly means to be healthy, is what pulled me out of an eating disorder in my late teenage years. I thought since it’s January and so many people are working towards adapting heathy habits for the New Year, that it would be beneficial to share my 5 tips to living a healthy lifestyle! Let’s dive in!
Move Your Body
Pretty simple right? I truly believe that our bodies were created to move every day! We were made to move y’all! The secret sauce is figuring out how you like to move! I personally love running, so I tend to run a lot. However, if you hate running…. DON’T run! There are so many forms of exercise! If you haven’t found one you like yet, keep trying! It does not matter if you are walking, dancing, hiking, biking, taking a yoga class, or anything else your heart desires! Just MOVE! I personally try to move my body everyday. Even if it’s a rest day from my planned exercise, I still go for a walk with my dog. I find a step goal is a great way to motivate yourself! I aim for 10,000 steps daily.
Drink Lots of Water
Do you know that the average person walks around dehydrated most of the time? Our bodies need lots of water daily! A good rule of thumb is to drink half your bodyweight in ounces. So for example….If you have a 150 pound person, they should aim to drink 75 ounces a day. I personally drink about a gallon a day, but I also have no trouble drinking lots of water! I find that a water bottle with a straw also helps me drink more! I am linking some of my favorites here.
Fuel your body with what makes you feel GOOD.
Food is an amazing thing. If you know me, you know I am a HUGE foodie! I truly love all food! I don’t believe in cutting anything out of my daily diet. I believe in balance. I always tell my boys to listen to their bodies. Our bodies are SO smart! They tell us when we are hungry, when we are full, and what makes us feel good!
For example, I usually fuel my body with about 80% whole foods, 20% fun foods. I know this allows me to enjoy my favorite foods, but also fuels me for my daily lifestyle and exercise. Over November and December, it was probably more 50/50. Between my vacation to Florida/Disney, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and holiday parties…. I indulged A LOT. As a result of all that indulging, I wasn’t FEELING my best. I tell my kids all the time, if you put mostly crap in your body, you’re going to feel like crap! Not saying that all the stuff I was eating was crap, but our bodies aren’t created to eat a ton of processed sugar and other processed stuff. As a result of that, I wasn’t feeling my best. However, with that said, I don’t need to cut out all carbs, or go no sugar, to make up for the last couple of months…. I simply got back on track eating in the way that makes my body feel good. I promise you, if you truly start listening to your body and how it feels before/during/after you eat a meal, you will start to discover what it wants.
I do think its very beneficial for everyone to learn what is in their food and how much their bodies require each day, by tracking their intake. I do this at different times throughout the year to make sure I am fueling my body correctly and giving it ENOUGH. So many people (mainly women!) under eat, daily! By tracking your intake, it can really be eye opening to what/how much you are putting in your body. There are lots of apps (like myfitnesspal and mymacros+ ) that can make this so easy! I am not saying that everyone should track their food. I just think it’s very beneficial to learn what macronutrients are in the foods we are consuming daily, to make sure we are getting enough in!
Also, I’m linking my blog post here, where I share a few things I meal prep every week!
Strength Train
Remember in the beginning of this blog, where I said, “choose how you like to move your body”? Well, I believe strength training should be implemented. Strength training is SO important for our bodies, even more important as we get older. For example, do you want to be someone who falls at age 70 and breaks a hip? Probably not! Strengthening your muscles now can help prevent that! The benefits of lifting weights actually go way beyond just getting strong and looking “toned”. (I hate that word by the way, but that’s a ramble for another day!). Some other benefits of lifting, include better heart health, stronger bones, higher metabolism, better body, mechanics, and more! Not to mention, I find getting stronger totally addicting! Start by trying to add bodyweight exercises, twice a week. Push-ups, Pull-ups, squats, lunges, and dips are all great exercises for increasing strength! I was blessed to have my husband (who used to be a personal trainer for 15 years) teach me everything, when I first starting lifting seriously, 8 years ago. Find a reliable source (some that I recommend on IG that teach really lifting without the fluff are https://instagram.com/itsamarython?utm_medium=copy_link , https://instagram.com/kelseyjfit?utm_medium=copy_link , https://instagram.com/liftinglindsay?utm_medium=copy_link ,https://instagram.com/jordanlipsfitness?utm_medium=copy_link )or if you have the extra money, sign up for personal training for a couple months, so you can learn more!
Sleep
I am a HUGE believer in the power of sleep! Studies have shown that functioning on little sleep has the same effect as driving while drunk! That’s how important sleep is y’all! I personally aim for 7.5-8 hours of sleep each night. I find creating a bedtime is so important, and really makes that early alarm so much easier. I get up most mornings between 5:00-5:30, and I aim to be sleep by 9:30 each evening.
Hopefully, these tips give you a good place to start! Remember, it’s not about creating unrealistic exceptions, it’s about creating daily habits that add up to a lot in the long run! This subject is something I am passionate about, so feel free to drop any questions or comments down below!