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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Do Hard Things Now, So Life Becomes Easier Later Modern humans default to the easy way but it's not our fault... Throughout human history, we were wired to survive constant hardship - scarcity of food, threats from predators, harsh environments and manual labor for everything. Our DNA evolved for survival in these conditions, not for modern living. Imagine an early human stumbling across a fruit tree. It made sense to gorge - there was no telling when the next meal would come. The human who gorged had a higher chance of survival than the human who only ate a few pieces of fruit. Practicing self-control in an environment of scarcity would have been a death sentence. Likewise, if given a chance to rest instead of walking miles or hunting, rest was the obvious choice. The problem? Our genes haven’t caught up with modern life. Today, food is everywhere. We don’t have to fight to meet our basic needs. Technology does the heavy lifting, cars replace walking, entertainment is on-demand and calorie-dense foods are always within reach. Left unchecked, our instincts will always lean toward easy options like overeating unhealthy foods (that are so easily accessible) or driving to the store instead of walking. In other words, we’re still hardwired to take the path of least resistance. But here’s the catch: Choosing easy now often means a harder life later and choosing hard now often means an easier life later. Most modern humans are overweight, stressed, tired and dealing with chronic health problems because we’re following outdated survival programming that no longer serves us. It’s time to become aware of these defaults. To override them. To consciously choose the hard thing - because doing hard things is what actually makes life easier in the long run. Hard things like: Going to bed on time instead of watching another episode Preparing a healthy meal instead of grabbing fast food Moving your body instead of sitting all day Walking or biking to the store instead of driving Managing stress with deep breaths and fresh air instead of pouring a drink Looking at your habits instead of masking symptoms with medication It might feel uncomfortable because it goes against everything your biological programming is urging you to do. But that’s exactly why it matters. Don’t think of it as punishment or sacrifice. Think of it as an investment. Every time you take the stairs instead of the elevator, cook instead of order out, or put your phone down to truly rest, you’re building a life that’s easier, richer, and more fulfilling down the road. And remember: Do easy things, and you’ll have a hard life. Do hard things, and you’ll have an easy life. Most of the above information is probably not new to you. That’s because we live in the information age with the internet and now AI - we already know what it is we need to do. The problem however is implementation. This is where having a customized plan and accountability comes in. If you know the hard things you need to do more of but struggle with breaking past your ‘default mode’ then contact us for a complimentary consultation HERE .
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We are back with our second series of 'Pod Calls' available exclusively to our Nova Health Club members. Don't miss these unique sessions to help you level up your health and wellness game! What is a Pod Call? A Pod Call is a live online (webinar like)_ session with a Nova coach, offering support and insights on key health topics like fitness, nutrition, recovery and overall wellness. Why did we create Pod Calls? Our goal is your success and your health goals can not be built on fitness alone. After delivering thousands of personal training sessions, we noticed a disconnect between fitness sessions we were delivering and the other pillars of health (and lifestyle habits that happen outside of the gym). To get the most out of your health and your fitness sessions at Nova we need to link other pillars such as mindset, nutrition, stress and recovery. Training coaches who care about your results will agree that a couple hours of personal training each week is not enough time to workout AND learn everything you need to know about maximizing those workouts... Things like how to eat before or after workouts, what recovery habits should be practiced or the link between stress and working out are all subjects that you need to know on your health and fitness journey. Pod Calls are dedicated sessions where we teach you essential health and fitness insights that we can't often cover during your gym workouts. We hope you take advantage of these expert-led sessions that will enhance your workouts, teach you new concepts about health and bridge the gap between fitness and overall wellness. Upcoming Pod Calls (all times in EST) Mon Jun 2, 2025 (6:00pm) Topic: How To Eat Carbs For Better Energy, Muscle & Fat Loss Coach: Josh Allen Wed Jun 4, 2025 (2:00pm) Topic: Hip Mobility Using the 'CARS' (active session) Coach: Kim Vo Sat Jun 7, 2025 (12:00pm) Topic: Benefits of Single Leg & Arm Training for Overall Strength Coach: Matthew Nadler Tues Jun 10, 2025 (6pm) Topic: Releasing Neck Tension Coach: Zack Fernandez Wed Jun 18, 2025 (1:00pm) Topic: Training The Backside of The Core Coach: Colin Soltesz Thu June 19, 2025 (7:00pm): Topic: Ayurveda for Healthy Ageing Coach: Kayla Hutchinson These calls are free for Nova members and Zoom links for each call can be found in the Nova Mighty Networks platform. If you are not a Nova member and would like to attend any of these please email Info@NovaHealthClub.com for a seat. We look forward to seeing you then!
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