Written By Stephanie Caroline Snyder / Reviewed By Ray Spotts
Building a healthier life can be easier if you think of it as a series of small choices. Getting up 15 minutes earlier so you have time for a quick walk before you shower and go to work is a small but highly beneficial action to take for your body. Making sure that part of each meal is raw produce means having fresh fruits and veggies at hand. One water bottle can reduce toxins and support your cleansing organs.
Move More
If you are doing your own shopping, make life a little harder and park in the hinterlands. For those running errands with small children, this may be more of a challenge, but you can look for the furthest abandoned shopping cart from the door and use that tool to corral your little ones safely into the store.
You can also trick yourself into more movement. Use a regular cup for your tea instead of your thermal cup so you have to fill it more often. If you really want a candy bar in the middle of the day, you can have it, but you have to walk to the convenience store or up the stairs from the basement vending machines of your office building.
Finally, tie fitness activities to other basic actions of life. Do 10 wall plank pushups each time you use the bathroom. While you're waiting for your coffee to brew, tuck your core in tight and stand on one foot until your beverage is ready. Store five-pound weights beside your desk at home. When you want to check your phone, do 10 overhead presses first. Focus on form and maintaining good posture.
Split Your Plate
Think of your dinner plate as a pie. One-half of your plate needs to be fruits and vegetables, preferably raw. If that has little appeal for you, use small bowls to hold:
- fresh berries
- grapes
- a quartered apple
- broccoli spears
- carrots or celery sticks
Place them on your plate, surrounding them with lean protein and whole grains.
To boost your intake of fresh fruits and veggies, you may need to do some meal prepping in your free time. Getting home tired and starving is not a good source of inspiration to get busy chopping up veggies for a salad. Treat yourself to bagged salads if your budget allows, or put in some time on the weekend
- rinsing greens to store in a Ziploc
- chopping carrots and celery to add to your fresh greens
- rinsing and splitting up fresh fruit into grab and go bags in the refrigerator
If it's prepped and ready to go, you will be more likely to use it up before it spoils.
Finally, focus on your food. Overeating and mindless eating are much easier in front of a screen. Do your best to have nothing in front of you but your food and a good companion if at all possible.
Never Be Without Water
Invest in a double wall insulated water bottle or two and get a filter pitcher for your refrigerator. At the end of the day, take five minutes or less to wash, rinse and fill your water bottles so you have cool water at hand as soon as you look in the refrigerator.
In addition to always having water at hand, look for ways to reduce your intake of flavored and sweetened waters. Water is delicious when you're thirsty, but for many of us having something flavored means that we don't return to our water bottles easily.
Instead of making the switch to iced tea or soda early in the day, use any cool beverage that isn't water as a cool treat at the end of the working day. Skip the caffeinated soda at mid-morning and have a hot cup of green tea or a small coffee. Enjoy a caffeine-free soda or flavored water at three when you need a brain break. Try to drink only water or unsweetened iced tea at home.
One of the challenges to making better food and drink choices is to be sure you seldom have access to the poor choices. Try eating a meal that you're proud of before you go to the grocery store. Making good shopping choices is easier if you have enjoyed an extremely healthy meal before buying more food and drinks.
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Written By:
Stephanie Caroline Snyder graduated from The University of Florida in 2018; she majored in Communications with a minor in mass media. Currently, she is an author, freelance internet writer, and blogger. She was born and raised in Panama City, Florida, where her family still lives. The oldest of four children moved out to Utah to pursue her professional interests in early 2019 and worked on content creation, blogging, and internet articles since then. She enjoys storytelling, painting, dancing, and swimming with her fiancé Marcus and their beloved dog Pluto.
Reviewed By:
Founder Ray Spotts has a passion for all things natural and has made a life study of nature as it relates to health and well-being. Ray became a forerunner bringing products to market that are extraordinarily effective and free from potentially harmful chemicals and additives. For this reason Ray formed Trusted Health Products, a company you can trust for clean, effective, and healthy products. Ray is an organic gardener, likes fishing, hiking, and teaching and mentoring people to start new businesses. You can get his book for free, “How To Succeed In Business Based On God’s Word,” at www.rayspotts.com.