Ten Simple Strategies To Improve Your Health
Josh Allen • March 3, 2020
Even The Smallest Effort Can Lead To Bigger Things
The journey towards your health and fitness goals will always be derailed if you believe the smallest effort has no worth. Just like a seed grows into a bigger plant, our smallest effort can multiply and lead into bigger things, taking you closer to your goals. Here is list of best ‘simple strategies’ you can implement today.
Breathe: Stop what you are doing and take note of the posture you are breathing in. Focus on breathing through your diaphragm versus your chest. You should feel and notice your outer rib cage expand and relax.
Raise Your Sternum: Do you suffer from bad posture? One of the biggest causes of bad posture is due to our nervous system. The more we are in a bad position the more our brain learns that this is normal thereby keeping us in bad form. The best way to recalibrate your posture is to lift your sternum high. You will notice your shoulder blades sink, traps relax and chest open up. Do this as often as you remember.
Make Treats Inconvenient: It is too easy to have treats when they are around. Make it hard to have treats by either making them yourself or walking/running to them. For example, rather than buying treats when you do your regular grocery store visit try walking to your treat or making it. The inconvenience will most likely keep you from eating as many cookies.
Get Outside:
We are inside sitting way too much these days. If you live in northern climates it makes it harder to get out but you make the effort. Go outside and sit, walk, garden or commute. Being outside, even if you're sitting to feel the elements (sun, wind, cold, heat) on your body is essential for health. If you are cold, focus on your breath. By getting outside you will naturally end up moving more!
Improve Sleep: We are a population of people trying to put more work into a 24-hour day which means we are trading off sleep. A good night’s sleep is essential for the brain and body to recover and maintain healthy function. Try going to bed an hour earlier than normal and do your best to sleep when it is dark outside.
Try Exercise Snacking:
Again, thinking that you must have your gym clothes, be at the gym and spend an hour exercising
is a sure barrier to progress. However, knowing that you can do squats or push ups anywhere in almost any clothes makes it more realistic. If you are walking, try running to a light pole. If you are watching TV then plank for one minute during each commercial. If you think about push ups then do a couple push ups. If you only have 20 minutes to exercise then do it over needing 60 minutes.
Change One Meal:
Food is more than just something we eat for energy. It has so many ties to our emotions and social situations that trying to change our whole diet will never work. If you rarely eat salad, you are kidding yourself thinking you will eat salad everyday as part of your new routine. If change is needed, try starting with one meal a day or improving one day a week before trying to do the whole week.
Drink Water Upon Waking:
Need more water than what you have been drinking? Start your day with 500 ml of water as soon as you wake. This is an easy way to get more water than what you have been consuming. While you may need more, this is a great start and takes no effort at all.
Do Something Nice:
The feeling of giving to or helping someone does as much for them as it does for you. When we do something nice for someone it creates a ‘Helper’s High’ that feels good and boosts your self-esteem. It has been said that it helping someone does more for the happiness of the person helping than the person being helped.
Values Clarification: This last one may not be considered simple but thought precedes action and this could be one of the most important things you can do. Perhaps it is time to check in on your values and do some self introspect over your next morning coffee. Making progress towards a healthier, more fit life does not happen without placing high value on health and fitness. Choosing to exercise and be healthy means saying no to something else. There are trade-offs with everything in life. What do you value most and are willing to trade off?
These 10 ideas are very broad and will carry different weight depending on the person. Find out what is the most realistic step for you to take. Remember a small step that is maintained is better than sprinting that turns into a stop. We all know the story of the tortoise and the hare.
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