A new year is on the horizon and many of us use this marker as a sign we need to step things up and get healthy. There are many areas to focus on to overcome your areas of weakness for the year ahead.
You can achieve anything once you set your mind to it. Here are 10 great ways on how you can improve your health in 2017. Make this year, a year to remember.
1. Get More Exercise
There’s no escaping the research, we would all do better to take more exercise. However, that doesn’t mean you should lace up your trainers unless running is something you love.
Exercise does us far more good if we stick at it for the long haul, therefore choose an exercise you enjoy: whether that’s a team sport; swimming; dance class; yoga; or even walking. If you haven’t exercised for a while it’s wise to start gradually and that’s why walking is a great choice, as it can be built naturally into your day.
2. Reduce Stress
Stress is a killer and one way you can make your 2017 healthier, as well as happier, is to find strategies to alleviate the negative impact of stress on your life. Mindfulness and meditation are great ways to combat your individual stress triggers.
3. Connect More
While you unplug, take the time to build connections in the real world. Meet with friends and family face to face and work on becoming part of a strong community as this can have a positive impact on wellbeing.
4. Quit Smoking
With over 5 million deaths globally per year from smoking and a further 600,000 from passive smoking it’s clear tobacco has to go. If you can’t quite bear to part with the psychological element of smoking and you have no wish to go cold turkey on nicotine, with the subsequent withdrawal symptoms that entails, then vaping might be the right choice for you.
There a wide range of e-liquid flavours to accommodate to your taste as well. Furthermore, there are informative beginners’ guides to eliquids available which are extremely useful in your battle to quitting smoking.
5. Eat Better
Rather than starting a drastic diet that will have you reaching for the biscuits half way through the second day why not crowd out the bad with the good? Adding more lean protein, good fats, vegetables, fruits and the occasional treat to the menu can help make great nutrition a new habit.
6. Look After Your Brain
The leading cause of death in the UK is now dementia, so the more active you can keep your brain the better. Learning a second language has been shown to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
7. Drink Less
Moderate drinking has health benefits but keep it within the weekly unit guidelines if you want to avoid many of the diseases linked with alcohol consumption. Ensuring you have several alcohol free days per week is also helpful.
8. Take Technology Breaks
Social media and the online world bring with them many advantages but it’s also a good idea to unplug and unwind from time to time. If you want to sleep better then keep technology out of the bedroom.
9. Stay Positive
Optimists have a longer lifespan than pessimists and they also usually have a better quality of life. Therefore, take time out from the doom and gloom of the media and try to look on the brighter side of life.
10. Don’t Set Unrealistic Resolutions
As the New Year rolls around, it’s always exciting to make new resolutions but slow and steady wins the race. Pick carefully what you will work on this year but always make health a priority.
