On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your overall feeling of well-being?
Recently, I was at a wellness luncheon and was inspired by the information from the different speakers. Achieving optimal health isn’t easy, which is why good eating habits and regular exercise are so important.
Our love of convenience has led us down a path of processed, prepackaged, precooked, preservative-filled “meals” and our portion size is ever-increasing. Also, most of us have been living with stress for so long, we now call it “normal.” But it’s far from normal and the health consequences are very real.
What can you do?
- Adjust your lifestyle
- Learn to prioritize
- Learn to pick your battles
- Eat right and exercise
- Practice mindful meditation
- Break up the monotony
- Get fresh air
- Find daily quiet time
Take care of and nurture yourself. You cannot accomplish anything if you’re unhealthy. All batteries get run down, even yours. So recharge your body physically and mentally and make the commitment to enjoy some “you time” every day. Making time for yourself is necessary so that you can keep up with all your responsibilities.
- Manage your stress: stress makes us sick. Chronic stress affects digestion, cortisol accumulates causing increased belly fat, appetite and cravings increase and you gain weight. We have the power to control how we respond or chose to respond to stressful situations.
- Eat right: eat a healthy breakfast to really rise & shine. Eating a wide variety of plants in different colors offer many protective health benefits for your whole body. According to studies, 8 out of 10 adults do not consume the right amount of nutrients their body needs. Remember, every meal is a new chance to eat healthier.
- Move it: nobody ever got healthier by sitting on a couch. According to experts, your body needs 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise or 75 minutes of high-intensity exercise every week. Think of your workout schedule just as you’d think of a doctor’s appointment or other commitment. Stick to it & reap the rewards.
- Drink more water: dehydration is an energy killer. Proper hydration helps you avoid feeling sluggish throughout the day, and 8 ounces of water before meals help suppress hunger and appetite. Half your weight in pounds equals the amount of water, in ounces, you need per day.
- Get more sleep: being sleep deprived is similar to feeling drunk. 7-9 hours of sleep per day is recommended for optimal health. Practice a relaxing bedtime ritual, like writing in a gratitude journal. Manage your bedroom temperature, sound, and light, invest in comfortable mattress and pillows and avoid sleep stealers, like caffeine. Turn off electronics before bed. These are simple steps that that you can take to help you get more sleep.
Wellness generally refers to a healthy balance of the mind, body, and spirit that results in an overall feeling of well-being. Wellness requires balanced living, and is an active process of becoming aware of and making choices towards living a healthy and fulfilling life. Maintaining balanced requires protecting your mental and emotional health, and taking steps to reduce stress.
Healthy mantra: I can eat more plants – fruits & veg, I can eat less processed food and I can eat the right portion size for my body.
Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained. – Robert Albert Bloch
Control what you can control. Don’t lose sleep worrying about things that you don’t have control over because, at the end of the day, you still won’t have any control over them. – Cam Newton
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To Your Success,
Althea
Althea A. McLeish Wilson, RN, MSN
Educate . Empower . Encourage
Promoting inner health & outer beauty!
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