Living A Healthy Life
It seems that everyone is concerned with healthy living these days. Of course, this is a good thing. It’s important to be concerned with your health and to look for better strategies to improve your life. On the other hand, it also seems like everyone has a quick solution for healthy living (for a hefty fee, of course). You can barely turn on the TV or pick up a magazine without seeing a celebrity or doctor trying to get you to buy their new book detailing “the latest miracle diet” that will transform your appearance and change your life(!!!)… whether it’s fresh-ground wheat grass or a daily tin of Brazil nuts.
The reality is…these diets are unnecessary. Healthy living is available to everyone, and it does NOT depend on buying the latest diet book or “designer vitamins”. What it really boils down to is making healthy decisions.
EATING HEALTHY
One of the most important facets of a healthy life is eating nutritious foods. Don’t try to follow a trendy diet… just eat a balanced diet of nutritious foods. Eating healthy is not a diet anyway…it MUST BE a way of life. When you eat well, you lower your risk of many health problems such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain kinds of cancer and osteoporosis. You will also find yourself with more energy, allowing you to enjoy life in ways you weren’t when you were less healthy.
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The most consistently-ignored groups of foods, and the one that is most often the cause of poor diets, is fruit and vegetables. There is nothing particularly innovative about this advice… everyone knows that “you need to eat your fruits and vegetables”. The main problem is that so few people actually consume the seven to ten daily servings of fruits and vegetables that they’re supposed to have each day. And when they do eat fruit and vegetables, it is too often in forms that include added sugar, salt or fat.
The food group that we all eat too much of is meat. Try to limit your meat intake, and emphasize meat alternatives for your protein needs. While you definitely need meat (or an alternative) for protein, most people eat far too much from this food group. You’ll be surprised at how little is actually required to get you through the day.
GET ACTIVE
Once you’ve started eating well, it’s time to go out and get some physical activity! Now… this DOESN’T mean you have to incorporate a rigorous physical workout into your daily routine (although some people may need this…it depends on where you start, and your personal metabolism). For the most part, however… just including small amounts of physical activity in your life can make a significant difference. So… take the stairs instead of the escalator. Walk to the corner store instead of driving a few blocks. Start slowly and incorporate more physical activity into your life. You’ll be amazed at how quickly the results will add up!
HAVE FUN
The final component of healthy living is to have a healthy mind. Build up a strong peer group who will give you the social support you need to be truly happy. Find activities that you enjoy and make time for them. Don’t live to work…work to eat. That’s easy to forget! People need other people…and they need to find meaning in the things they do. If you like animals, get a pet. The right pet can be an amazingly therapeutic influence. Give of yourself. Volunteer a couple hours a week to help those less fortunate. It’s amazing how much better your life can look when you’ve seen how other people are living! All these things will help reduce your stress, which will only lead to a healthier body.
July 15th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
People should start thinking their present life make their future. They seem not to care about it!
July 29th, 2008 at 11:20 am
Living a healthier life can not only extend your life, it can also improve the quality. Feeling physically better and having control over your own life can greatly increase your mental health as well. Although there are some aspects of physical and mental health that are beyond an individual’s (and science’s) control, there are many things that people can do to improve their quality of life.
August 13th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
I tell my patients that living healthfully will not only make them stronger, healthier and more active, but it will extend their lives as well. In today’s society, one cannot afford to live poorly.
August 28th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Great post. Having a well balance diet is not every thing to remain healthy one should check there daily sleeping, exercise routine etc. And yes you are right that this will defiantly extend the life.
Thanks for a wonderful article.
September 24th, 2008 at 10:17 am
It’s really good that all people are striving their best effort to remain healthy as it is said, ” Health is Wealth”. Eating nutritious foods with a regular exercising can work wonders for anyone really.
October 11th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
I totally agree with this article and with Bluetooth, Health is Wealth, Health always comes first, If you have Health, you can get wealth, but wealth cannot get you health
November 4th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
I enjoyed your post. I could not agree more that there really is not such thing as a truly “Magic Wand Solution”. Not in the long run anyways. If you end up getting extremely fast results from a “Fad Diet” studies have shown that people generally gain back 110% of the weight that they lost while on the diet. So you actually end up GAINING weight. The best way to get in shape and lose those extra pounds is to incorporate a healthy diet, along with a strength training workout routine. If you don’t enjoy traveling back and forth to the gym all week long there are home gyms that you can purchase. The great benefit with a gym in your home is that you can do a total body workout routine at any time of the day that is convenient for you. Not to mention the fact that you don’t have to travel back and forth to the gym all week long, pay costly gym fees, wait in line for equipment ect.
April 1st, 2009 at 4:33 am
I enjoy reading articles on your website, very informative!
In my opinion Healthy Living and Holistic Health are main building blocks to fulfilling your potential for living a happier and more satisfying life, includes and touch upon all aspects of our lives including:
* The food we eat
* The homes we live in
* The way we travel
* The careers we choose
* The level of wealth we choose
* The way we think
* The personal relationships we have
They all contribute not only to defining who we are and how we choose to live our lives, but also the impact these choices ultimately have on our health and happiness.
Stay Healthy!
April 19th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
Nice post,, Healthy living and weight loss are inseparable. In order to have a healthy lifestyle, we must learn how to live a balanced life. Cultivating healthy living while you are young will also help promote good health when you are entering your golden years.
May 5th, 2009 at 6:57 pm
I agree with your healthy living articles, but I think we need also sleep enough, and good relationships for living a healthy lifestyle
May 18th, 2009 at 6:08 am
Yes i agree that eating healty is the main factor of healthy life. You are what you eat. So if you want to build healty life start with your food. Take a good consideration of what kind of food that you eat. Its very important.
June 9th, 2009 at 3:46 am
Great post. Having a well balance diet is not every thing to remain healthy one should check there daily sleeping, It’s really good that all people
June 15th, 2009 at 6:44 am
This is a very timely post. And it should be read by everyone. Truly health is wealth, and we should look after ourselves all the time. In order for us to stay fit and healthy.
July 1st, 2009 at 10:45 pm
nice post, eating healty is the main factor of healthy life. but i got trouble on my stomach, after eating banana. i dont know what hapens on my body??
July 12th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Total Health is about Diet + Exercise + Mentality…
A lot of problems are actually coming from the 1st component, Diet…I can’t imagine the amount of junk food that we are consuming everyday..full of oil and “un-natural” preservatives.
When their health problems start to surface, they then turn to medicine and vitamins for help. After recovering, they will start the bad diet cycle again.
Which all the initial health issues can be prevented by JUDGING at the food we eat…
August 13th, 2009 at 2:10 am
Always the golden rule, prevention is better than cure, we have to learn from unhealthy habits even before the illness comes. What we spent for medication could’ve been spent for nutritious foods and healthy lifestyle.
August 14th, 2009 at 4:42 pm
I agree with “Healthy foods” that another key ingredient for a healthy lifestyle is proper sleep. As we get older, we may need less sleep, but it’s important that the sleep we do get is healthy sleep. When we’re properly rested, our minds and bodies are better able to benefit from the other healthy diet and exercise habits we practice.
August 15th, 2009 at 3:00 am
The food group that we all eat too much of is meat. Try to limit your meat intake, and emphasize meat alternatives for your protein needs. While you definitely need meat (or an alternative) for protein, most people eat far too much from this food group. You’ll be surprised at how little is actually required to get you through the day
August 16th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
For sure -eating healthy is the key to a healthier body. Fact is, it accounts for 80% of fat loss – and when you throw in interval training and multi movement strength training – you have a nice recipe against fat loss!
January 28th, 2010 at 4:09 am
The key to a healthy life is living a balanced life. It is when aspects of our life get out of balance that we experience problems. For example – when our love of food is greater than our love of exercise then we are at risk of becoming overweight. There may be psychological reasons why we over eat but if overeating is balanced by sufficient exercise it is unlikely to lead to weight gain.
January 28th, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Personally for me eating healthy has been the biggest secret to my weight loss. I never went on a diet but i changed my lifestyle of eating. I have lost 10 kg’s over 9 years. Yes, it took me time but I know that I won’t easily put it on again unless I go back to drinking beer and eating yummy pies again! Seriously find food that you like and eat it in moderation. Eat anything but be sensible and eat only a little of it. Dont pig out! Also dont eat a lot at night. My hubby taught me that and he is very slim!
February 11th, 2010 at 12:54 am
I hate diets and anyone who promotes them! This site has wonderful advice. One thing I would like to add is to take a good omega 3 supplement too. There is conflict between the fish oil or flaxseed oil. Personally I like flaxseed oil because it tastes better. I buy a cold pressed expensive high quality oil that works like a charm. add that to your diet and your cravings for sweet foods will die down.
February 24th, 2010 at 10:34 pm
Great principles, but sometimes doing everything right still isn’t enough. There are hidden causes to illness, such as injuries or toxic overload or even a plugged up colon that can be hard to pinpoint. We live in a very polluted environment and that alone can cause illness in the sensitive, making it even more important to adhere to the principles you discuss in your article. But if a healthy lifestyle and good diet doesn’t do it, it’s time to identify and deal with the hidden reasons.
April 27th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
Due to commercialism in our lives, many people are profiting while giving stupid advice for improvement of one’s health. I am 1000% sure that a diet book or a doctor can not give you health until you and only you want to stay fit and smart. If you want it, there are just three words in the game game, eat good, increase physical activities and enjoy the beauty of life.
May 9th, 2010 at 9:10 pm
I agree holistically that health living is not about restricting rather is about making good choices unconditionally. This is easy to say in writing the reality is that require the support and a kick start.
May 25th, 2010 at 4:05 am
Great post, I think also think too many people think living a healthy lifestyle involves spending a lot of money. Simple things like walking regularly and eating properly can make huge difference to overall health.
June 2nd, 2010 at 12:57 pm
There are hundreds of diet books available. I’m even considering writing one myself.
You’re right, all you need is to eat healthy and sensibly. The diet book means nothing without motivation to carry the diet through the years. I’ve also found it useful to write down the reasons for a healthy diet and keep at the dinner table to review. This helps as a reminder.
I also track my daily food consumption and calories. This is the great leveler.
August 25th, 2010 at 3:34 am
The trick to healthy living is making small changes…taking more steps, adding fruit to your cereal, having an extra glass of water…these are just a few ways you can start living healthy without drastic changes. Eating a healthy diet is another part of the healthy lifestyle. Not only can a clean diet help with weight management, it can also improve your health and quality of life as you get older.
June 3rd, 2011 at 12:29 pm
I completely agree with you that a healthy lifestyle not only includes proper diet and exercise, but also having positivity all around you when it comes to the people you surround yourself with. Emotional stress can be just as harmful as over eating or lack of exercise. Thanks for emphasizing that they all go hand in hand in living a healthy lifestyle.