Healthy Daily Habits That Have Changed My Life
Leading on from my
previous blog post (https://chapterbychapman.blogspot.co.uk/2017/08/ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-changing.html)
where I talked about how small changes in your life equate to big changes here
is a collection of a few things that I have realised have made me really feel
like I have my life on track. Whether I do or not, that’s a different story.
But these habits make me feel like I’m looking after myself, learning new
things every day and that I’m bettering myself.
Your daily healthy habits may look
similar to mine, or they could be the complete opposite. But even if you don’t
practise them every day ensure that you allow yourself practise self-love,
mindfulness and gratitude as often as you can. Only then will you notice an
increase in your self-confidence and be able to align the other aspects of your
life with what you want as you will be happier and more content with yourself.
Do what you believe you would do if you were the best, most together version of
yourself that you could possibly be.
Being healthy means different things
to everyone, so it’s about finding what makes you feel accomplished and
productive. A unique colour on each individual, but here is mine.
1. Drink a litre of water before breakfast.
I really like to start my days off
with this. I’m a very active person so I always make sure I drink between 2-4
litres per day and this immediately gets my day off to a good start. It gets
your metabolism going and sets you up for a hydrated day. I make sure I have a
glass of water or a bottle on my bed side table the night before so it’s the
first thing I see when I wake up. Water is so so important - it composes 75% of
your brain, 83% of your blood, 22% of your bones and 75% of your muscles, it
regulates your body temperature, helps to convert food into energy and helps
your body to absorb nutrients to name just a few of its perks!
2. Meditate everyday.
If you think about the hours you are
awake for, your mind is constantly ‘on’. Your brain never gets a break and
sometimes you can get stressed, over-worked and get stuck in a cycle of
over-thinking all simply because you forget to give your mind a rest. Just 10
minutes of meditation a day can help you to clear your mind and give it the
well-deserved break it needs to thrive. As a result your thoughts will be
clearer and more concise, you will be more focused and this can improve your
mental clarity. My favourite app to use is Headspace, an easy to follow,
beginners guide to meditation, and it’s free to download. Hashtag not
sponsored.
3. Make your bed before you do anything else.
By straightening your duvet and pillow
when you get up, you start your day off organised and in control, which will
only feed into the other aspects of your day. See the video linked to see a
naval officer’s take on the impact a small task such as making a bed can have
on your day.
4. Eat a healthy balanced diet.
I am vegan and have been for the majority
of 2017. With this I have noticed a complete shift in my energy levels, my
fitness levels and my general mood. I eat an abundance of fruits and veggies
but a large part of my diet is about feeding my soul - eating what I enjoy eating
to make myself content. I try to eat nutritiously to fuel my body as an athlete
and a dancer but have been told that I should stop eating my favourite
breakfast: peanut butter and sliced banana on toast, as it is extremely
unhealthy. But I would be more unhealthy being miserable from restricting
myself from doing what makes me happy. So I eat it. I also really like cake,
and take aways, and Starbucks. So I eat them. Albeit I eat less healthy options
in moderation, but life is too short not to eat what you want to. Discover what
you enjoy to eat and bloody eat it! Treat yo’self! Give yourself enough credit
to know you will acknowledge when it gets out of hand and need to treat
yourself a little less often until you’re at a sustainable level of balance
again.
5. Tidy 10 items away at a time.
When you feel like your life is messy,
and it’s reflected in the state of your room, it can seem daunting and you just
don’t know where to start. A lot of the time, you just choose to ignore it
rather that tackling it. But my parents taught my brother, my sister and I a
way to tackle mess head on. Stand within the mess, reach for the closest item to
your feet, and let that be the first thing you tidy away. Take it 10 items at a
time and eventually you will have tidied everything!
6. Have a private dance party.
Inspired by Grey’s Anatomy, put on some
music and dance it out. Whether you’re feeling happy, or sad, or scared, or excited,
if you’re fully clothed, in your underwear or butt naked, just dance it out.
Put your speakers on their max and allow the vibrations to carry you. Put on
your headphones, shut your eyes and the world out of your mind, and just move
your body. Shake it off, or stamp it out, or just celebrate! There’s something freeing
and refreshing about expressing your mood in the privacy of your room by moving
your body. No judgement, just dancing in its rawest, least technical form.
7. Do stretches for 15 minutes.
As a dancer, stretching is very
important to ensure my flexibility doesn’t detract from my level of dance. But even
for a non-dancer, stretching everyday can be revitalising, especially if you’re
tired. Stretching your muscles improves your mobility, reduces muscle soreness
and increases your oxygen intake which helps to clear your skin and your mind
and it releases endorphins to make you happier overall.
8. Be creative!
Similar to number 2, give yourself the
time to use your mind creatively! Get your focus away from your work or your
phone and let your imagination flow. Write a poem, or a novel, or if that’s too
much of a task, focus on the opening to a novel. Use the time to spark an idea using
a mind map or write a blog post! Play an instrument, or learn how to play one,
spend your daily 10 minutes working out the first bar of a song. Sing your favourite
song at the top of your lungs or write an original one, choreograph a dance,
paint a picture, complete a page of a colouring book. Do whatever you love to
do, just allow yourself time to be artistic and original. Every ingenious idea came
to the creator at a specific moment, and yours could happen today, but only if
you allow yourself the time to nurture it.
9. Practise gratitude every day.
Gratitude helps to rewire your brain
to think positively about what you already have, rather than wishing for what
you don’t. I write down three things I am grateful for in my gratitude journal
whenever I get the chance. This allows you to recognise and appreciate the
little things that bring you joy that you may have otherwise overlooked. Recalling
things that made you happy can never be a bad thing and can shift your brain to
think optimistically about all aspects of your life. If you are feeling down,
you can look back on the things that made your day before and try to recreate
those things to bring your mood back up.
10. Spend time outside.
Fresh air equals fresh ideas, fresh
outlooks and feeling refreshed. A lot of the entries in my gratitude journal
include feeling the sun on my face, cloud watching, spending time walking dogs
or exploring new places. Get moving, bring a friend and have a chat, and if
you’re coming along with me, then it’ll probably include getting coffee
afterwards. Go for a bike ride, go for a walk, even without a dog, sunbathe in
your garden, wash your car or have a picnic. Sit on the chairs out the front of
a coffee shop, or park slightly further away from your destination to spend an
extra 5 minutes walking there getting in that Vitamin D!
11. Exercise regularly.
Now everybody knows that exercise is
key to staying fit and healthy, but not everyone gives themselves enough time
to do it in the way they love. Everyone will have a different preference of how
they like to exercise. But a mismatch of styles will help to keep your muscles
alert and versatile giving you the best results. I enjoy a mixture of outside
cardio (long dog walks or cycling), yoga classes, weight lifting and dance
classes. No matter which you choose, it will boost your wellbeing and mood due
to the release of endorphins, you will feel accomplished every time you
complete a work out and you will develop less health problems, all whilst
destressing from the tensions of life. It’s a win win!
12. Turn off your phone!
My generation is particularly renowned
for being addicted to social media and I hold my hands up, I am completely
unhealthily addicted to mine. Set yourself time each and every day to put it
down and gradually increase your time without it as you continue this practise.
Hopefully you will increase your productivity along with it too. There is so
much life beyond your phone screen and it’s up to you to realise this. I’ve
recently seen wooden boxes specifically being sold as a hideaway for you to put
your phone so that it is out of sight. I am definitely making a conscious
effort to break my mobile phone addiction, and despite the fact that 80% of you
reading this will be on your phone right at this moment, you need to put your
phone down and live your life.
13. Plan ahead!
There’s nothing worse than feeling
unprepared. So sit yourself down and write a to do list, set your intentions
for the day. Fit everything in you need to do and prioritise the most important
so you know you’ve completed the hardest, more stressful tasks first before you
allow time to be creative and nurture your soul. Leave extra time when going to
appointments, be early and spend your newly freed up time having a quiet moment
with yourself in a coffee shop while you wait. Being organised and planning
ahead significantly reduces stress in your everyday life which allows you to
free up thinking time for new ideas and adventures, rather than having to focus
your mind on the stresses of disorganisation and panicking about uncompleted
tasks.
These are the daily habits that Annie,
in her purest, most productive form would hope to accomplish every day. But I
am just Annie, doing my best with the challenges life throws at me, and even if
I don’t manage a single item on this list today, I know that I may be lucky enough
to be given a fresh opportunity tomorrow.
What are you healthy daily habits? Are
they similar to mine or completely different? Leave me a comment below, I’d
love to read them!
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