The world is changing.
We are getting busier day-by-day due to the rise in academic and professional expectations of people from us.
This has taken a toll on our Health and Wellness.
Most of us think that maintaining Health and Wellness is an uphill task that consumes a lot of time.
What if it isn’t?
What if I told you that you can keep in shape and maintain amazing mental & emotional health by doing (and avoiding) some simple things which don’t consume much time.
Here are some amazing things which you can do to maintain & improve your health.
Improve physical health and wellness
1. Drink warm water
One of the best ways to maintain your health & improve immunity is to drink warm water every day.
You must drink warm water right after waking up and 30 minutes before eating heavy meals.
You should also avoid drinking cold water, especially while having meals & after doing an intense workout.
One can also drink warm water with lemon and honey first thing in the morning.
2. Have standing meetings & review sessions
Standing is one of the easiest ways to burn calories. You can have standing meetings at your workplace if the meetings are for less than 20-30 minutes.
You can also take reviews and interviews while walking instead of just sitting.
3. Take calls while walking
Most of us spend at least 30 minutes every day on phone calls. If possible, you should spend at least half of that time walking or standing.
All of us can burn extra calories by doing things that are very easy to follow.
4. Exercise for 30 minutes every day
Exercising for 20-30 minutes every day can compensate for your sedentary lifestyle. Most of the busy people spend a better part of their day sitting or engaging in a sedentary lifestyle.
Taking out some time from the day to engage in fitness activities will not only keep you in shape but also improve your ability to handle stress & work pressure.
5. Have a standing desk installed in your workplace
You should not sit for more than 60-90 minutes in one go. Taking small breaks of 3-5 minutes after every 60-90 minutes of sitting can improve blood flow in your legs and can provide for some time to stretch your muscles.
You can also stand while watching TV, reading, or even while on a call.
6. Prefer home-made food over fast food
It is advisable to carry your lunch box to your workplace & university and to avoid eating fast food.
If you have no choice but to eat outside food, then always prefer eating healthy food rather than bingeing on unhealthy fats or empty calories.
7. Wake-up early
If you have the flexibility to decide on your work timings, then you must wake-up early at around 5-6 AM so that you have enough time to focus on fitness & spend time with your family.
Early morning is the best time to get important work done since it is free of external & social distractions.
8. Have a healthy breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and you should not miss it.
Your breakfast should be filled with food containing healthy fats & protein. Adding fruits &/ or salad to breakfast can be helpful.
9. Drink green tea
Prefer drinking green tea over normal tea, coffee, or energy drinks during the day.
Green tea is loaded with antioxidants which are helpful in promoting brain functioning & lowering the risk of heart diseases.
10. Sleep for 6-8 hours daily
Sleeping is the most important constant in our lives.
Sleeping for 6-8 hours allows for proper carrying of growth & development functions in the body. No form of work or leisure is more important than sleeping.
You should ideally sleep before 12 at night and wake up before 6 in the morning.
11. Go for annual health check-ups
You must go for annual health check-ups because it helps in the early detection of several types of diseases.
Health check-ups are also a great way for you to see how your health is and in which areas can it be improved.
12. Carry healthy snacks to work/ college
You must carry healthy snacks like nuts, fruits, sandwiches, etc with you to work/ college to avoid bingeing on unhealthy alternatives like chocolates, chips, fries, etc during the day.
Improve mental and emotional health
People have started realising the importance of maintaining Mental and Emotional Health in recent times. Mental and Emotional Health coupled with Physical Health can produce compounding results for you in terms of reduced health costs, increased self-confidence, rock solid focus and patience, etc. You can improve your Mental and Emotional Health in the following ways:
1. Rule of 478
Rule of 478 is a highly effective way to reduce stress & manage anxiety attacks.
All that you have to do is breathe in through your nostrils for 4 seconds, hold the breath for 7 seconds, & then release air from nostrils for the next 8 seconds.
This exercise reduces stress, calms nerves, and increases the oxygen level in the blood.
2. Practice digital detox every week
Digital detox means detox from technology.
Doing a digital detox on weekends is a great way to hit the reset button on tech addiction. Digital detox also allows you to follow a hobby, spend time with family, personal development, reading, etc.
Digital detox can also be practiced daily by avoiding tech use 1 hour after waking up and 1 hour before sleeping at night
3. Meditation
Meditation is one of the best ways to improve mental & emotional health. Meditation helps in calming our minds & organizes our thoughts.
A 15-minute meditation along with a 15-minute meditation before sleeping at night is highly recommended for everyone, especially to people who work in a high pressure environment.
4. Anger management
Anger is your worst enemy. A stressful day coupled with an outburst of anger is the last thing that you want.
It is important to keep your anger under control and practice stress management techniques to keep mental health and wellness in check.
5. Tell your family and friends about your busy schedule to avoid any issues later
It is better to tell your close family members & friends about your busy schedule than to get taunted & pointed at for not paying enough attention to them.
This will save you from giving a lot of explanations about missing important events and calls. Rather, you will get the much needed mental & emotional support from the people who care about you.
6. Avoid yelling on subordinates
Yelling not only takes a toll on your blood pressure but also kicks in your body’s fight or flight mechanism which in turn stresses you out.
7. Listen to calm music
Calm music or meditation music is known to reduce mental pressure & cheer you up.
You can listen to calm music while traveling, during small breaks at work (or college), or even during free time.
8. Watch comedy movies on weekends
Laughing is the best remedy for stress & mental illnesses.
Watching comedy movies, attending standup- comedy events occasionally can be really helpful in fighting off the stress from hectic work schedules.
If at any time you feel low or emotionally burdened, just watch a good comedy movie & have a good laugh.
9. Practice gratitude
Practicing gratitude helps in lifting up your mood and leads to lower chances of depression & stress.
10. Avoid drugs, drinking, smoking
No matter how stressed or worked up you are, you must avoid resorting to drugs, regular drinking, & smoking.
All these things provide temporary relief from stress & work pressure and make things worse in the long run.
It is better to practice proper stress management techniques & seek help from mental health coaches than to engage in unhealthy practices.
Conclusion
Mental & emotional health is getting more and more important these days.
It is high time that you start paying equal attention to your physical, mental & emotional health & wellness.
It might be a little difficult to inculcate all the habits in your daily routine initially. However, with time things get easy and the results start appearing.
All that you need to do is start with the above-mentioned habits step-by-step and keep going: the results will follow eventually.