Taking care of yourself, especially in times of uncertainty, can be difficult. Things like “healthy eating” and self-care seem to get pushed to the side as big decisions and changes are made. However, if you’re not taking care of yourself, the difficult times are made even more challenging. The effects of living a healthy lifestyle will have a significant impact on your ability not only to be healthy but also to handle life in a troubling time. If you’re been struggling to live healthfully, here are a few basic tips on how to move forward and adopt healthy habits.

Physical Health

When someone is trying to make changes to live a “healthy” life, they generally think of physical health first, especially diet and exercise. But there is more than just that, you also need to consider things such as safety, financial security, and more. You will experience some seriously positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle with these physical health tips:

Physical Activity

Exercise and physical activity are a huge factor in impacting your physical health. If you’ve been living a more sedimentary life, such as working a desk job where you don’t walk around much of the day the positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle will be very obvious once you start to make changes. Here are some tips you should follow to achieve healthy exercise habits.

• Start by understanding what negative impacts poor exercise habits can have. A lack of physical activity can lead to obesity, lack of endurance, and can even have a huge impact on your mental health. Regular exercise can also prevent issues such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
• To get moving more, start by implement at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise three to five times a week. The best health benefits come from exercising more days each week, so if you can, shoot for five or six days a week.
• As far as styles of exercise, cardio is a great way to start when you’re beginning. This could mean going on a walk, running, dance exercises, pilates, and many more options. Once you have started to build up your endurance, you will want to introduce strength training as well. You will need to be careful as you can easily injure yourself if you don’t follow correct practices with weights. Don’t forget to stretch out after exercising to maintain your joint strength and flexibility.
• If you’re a beginner, start slowly and work your way up. Start too aggressive or a workout regiment can have negative health impacts and will ultimately hamper your efforts to develop good exercise habits.
• Make sure you have talked with your doctor about what kind of exercise plan is best for you. In 2016, over 80% of adults had a usual place to visit for medical care and advice. If you don’t have a regular medical provider, find one before you make any big changes to your habits.

Diet

Each and everyone has basic nutritional needs, but depending on age, gender, and health, those needs can greatly differ. Some of the most basic positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle come from meeting those nutritional needs via your diet. Here are some tips for implementing healthy dietary habits into your life:

• Make sure to get your three meals a day; breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Dinner does not have to be the biggest meal. Eating too much at dinner can lead to negative health results, especially if it’s close to your bedtime.
• The bulk of your dietary consumption should fall within the food groups of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy products. You should also incorporate lean meats, beans, and nuts for extra nutritional value. Eat red meat sparingly.
• A big part of maintaining a healthy diet is to focus on portion control. No food is considered bad food, as long as you can control your portions. For example, eating a small cookie isn’t bad, but eating five or six can have negative effects on your health.
• While sugar in small quantities isn’t bad, you do want to limit the amount you consume. Too much sugar can have negative impacts such as cavities, weight gain, and even diabetes.
• If you choose to live a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, make sure you talk with your medical provider about how to ensure you’re getting your necessary vitamins and minerals while avoiding certain food groups. Regardless of your dietary choices, you may want to consider adding a multivitamin to your daily routine.

Dental and Eye Care

Beyond exercise and diet, there are many other aspects of your physical health that you need to be aware of and getting regular checkups for, such as your dental care and eye care. If you haven’t been getting checkups regularly, implementing these new habits will show the immediate positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle.

• The most basic of dental care tips is to brush your teeth thoroughly for at least two minutes twice a day and floss at least once. It’s also recommended that you use a toothpaste with fluoride unless you’re pregnant.
• Visit your dental office at least once a year for a good cleaning and to check for cavities or other tooth or gum related issues.
• If you’re trying to figure out the best teeth whitening method for you, talk with your dentist. A natural option is to brush softly with baking soda to remove plaque and stains. You can also use at-home whitening strips, or even visit your dentist for professional whitening. Don’t whiten your teeth too often as it can damage your enamel and have negative effects on your dental health.
• When it comes to eye health, you should visit an eye care professional for a checkup at least once a year. This recommendation may vary depending on whether you use corrective lenses or have other existing eye issues.
• If you use a phone or computer screen often throughout the day, some eye care professionals recommend that you use blue light blocking glasses to limit the strain screens can have on your eyes.
• If you’re spending a lot of time in bright sunlight, it’s recommended that you wear UV blocking sunglasses or a hat with a large brim to protect your eyes.

General Safety

Another big part of maintaining your physical health is ensuring that you practice general safety in your everyday life. Implement these habits if you haven’t already will have immediate positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle.

• One big aspect of general safety is being aware of your surroundings. Whether that’s while driving, out on a walk, or even at work, knowing what’s going on around you can help you avoid accidents or potential injuries.
• Always wear your seatbelt while driving or riding in a vehicle. Ensure that anyone else traveling in the vehicle is properly buckled in.
• If you are spending time in or around the water, ensure that you and any loved ones are using lifejackets. If you have any open wounds and are around water that could have bacteria, make sure to use a waterproof bandage to protect your injury.
• If you don’t have a security system installed in your home, consider getting one. It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to home security.

Mental Health

Self-care and mental health are extremely important for everyone, especially during times of chaos in the world. The state of your mental health impacts your ability to handle stress, maintain relationships, and face and overcome challenges. Taking care of your mental health can range from simply taking a break day from work and responsibilities to visiting a doctor or therapist to get treatment or medicine for more serious issues.

It can be a lot of work to care for your mental health, even more so than physical health, simply because it’s much less visual. However, the positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle for your mentality are obvious when you make a change from negative to positive habits. Here are some tips you can apply to your everyday life to start making healthy mental health habits:

• The positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle physically will have a huge impact on your mental health as well. Exercise releases “happy” endorphins that can lift your mood and getting proper nutrients from your diet will help your brain function as it should.
• Another basic tip for both physical and mental health is getting enough sleep each night. It may vary from person to person, but adults should get anywhere from six to ten hours of sleep each night.
• Avoiding substance use, such as alcohol or illicit drugs will help you to strengthen your mental health. These substances get in the way of your ability to function in day to day activities and will negatively affect your health in all categories.
• Get help from a medical professional if you’re struggling. Nothing is embarrassing about meeting with a therapist or other doctor to talk through any issues you may be facing. They’ll have recommendations for ways to strengthen your mental health, treat anxiety and depression, and may even prescribe medications to help. Your doctor will help you to pick a medication that is covered by your Medicare benefits as well.
• Many people struggling with mental health issues have found that CBD products help greatly. If you are going to use cannabis to help with anxiety or depression, make sure to visit a location that has an official cannabis dispensary certification for the best quality products.
• If you face medical issues, one great way to have some peace of mind that you’re protected from any medical malpractice is to find a trustworthy attorney to work with. This is a preventative measure that you will be grateful you took if you ever had problems with doctor’s treatment.
• Many people find positivity and meaning in serving others or their community. Helping other people that are struggling or going through hard times helps your mental health because service boosts a neural pathway in the brain that boosts well-being. If you’re in a slump, forget about yourself and help someone else.
• As well as helping others, helping the environment can boost your mental well-being. Making eco-friendly choices, such as using solar energy or cutting down on your water usage can have serious positive impacts on the world which will in turn equal out to positives effects of living a healthy lifestyle for you.
• If you’re struggling with mental health issues like anxiety or depression, one great way to find some relief is talking with others who have the same struggles. This could mean talking with your friends and loved ones or even joining a community group to find some support.
• One cause of poor mental health is stress. While it’s almost impossible to completely eliminate all sources of stress from your life, you should sit down and assess where you feel the most stress. If it’s from work, talk with your boss about altering your workflow. If it’s from relationships around you, work through your issues with that person, or even distance yourself if the relationship is toxic. Take an active role in cutting our sources of stress to help strengthen your mental health.

In Conclusion

The positive effects of living a healthy lifestyle will be obvious in your life once you’ve started to implement them. Whether it’s your physical health or mental health, it’s important to take each seriously. If you take each step at a time, you will be able to slowly make healthy changes that turn into habits to help you live a healthy life that is perfect for your situation.

Like this:

10 facts about healthy living, 10 healthy tips for a healthy body, 10 healthy tips for a healthy lifestyle, 10 steps to a healthy lifestyle, 5 best practices in maintaining good health habits, 5 components of a healthy diet, 5 good health habits, 5 health care tips, 5 lifestyle factors that promote good health, 5 sentences about how to stay healthy, 5 ways to become healthy, 50 health facts, 6 influences on your health, 7 healthy lifestyle factors, 7 lifestyle factors, 7 tips for good physical health, 7 tips for healthy living, a good health, a healthy habit, a healthy life for me, a healthy lifestyle is important because.