Cassie Therrien-Abell is a Professional Wellness Coach and Owner of FitHappens Personal Training LLC.
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Poor health and low energy levels can negatively impact every part of your life. Your creative spark can be destroyed, leaving you with zero inspiration and ideas. Work would become tedious and hard going, and your social life would become a shadow of what it used to be.
Life for you would no longer be fun. It’s a sorry state of affairs.
What you need to transform your life is a healthier lifestyle. One that will bring back your natural energy and zest for life. It will not only improve your physical health but produce everlasting beneficial effects on your mental health as well. It will also create a positive environment for the people in your surroundings.
By learning the best healthy habits to take and following the tips in this article, you’ll be able to get back to this optimum state in no time.
You may be surprised to learn that more than 40 percent of the actions you perform every day aren’t actually decided by you. They’re actually habits. Habits dictate how we live, how we perform, and the results we achieve in life. This is why it is so important to have strong, positive habits.
In case you’re wondering what habits consist of, think of them this way: something that you regularly do without having to consciously think about.
According to Medical Dictionary, a healthy habit is
“a behavior that is beneficial to one’s physical or mental health, often linked to a high level of discipline and self-control.”
Positive habits are the basis of your success, while healthy habits improve your overall wellbeing and make you feel good. Good habits include things like regular exercise, a balanced diet, punctuality, keeping promises, etc. [1]
Positive habits make it possible for us to do things without spending exorbitant mental effort. For instance, instead of thinking about how to walk down the stairs in the morning, this is taken care of by your subconscious mind, which has learned the habit of walking safely downstairs. You don’t need to think about moving your legs, controlling your balance, etc.
Now you understand what habits are, and the benefits positive habits offer, let’s take a look now at 74 healthy habits to start with to transform your life. These habits are broken into four sections:
Most people gobble down their food and don’t take the time to chew or enjoy it properly. If you’re one of these people, try slowing down your eating by chewing your food longer than you would normally do. You’ll enjoy the taste of your food more, and you’re likely to eat less too.
At home, you snack on what’s in your cupboards, refrigerator, and freezer. If all you have in there is ultra-processed foods like fries, chocolate, and ice cream, then you’ll find yourself snacking on them (not a good idea). To break this habit, make sure you have loads of healthy foods in your home, like dried fruits, seeds and nuts to help satisfy your hunger cravings.
Sounds like a lot? There’s been a saying in the health industry to take 10,000 steps daily to stay healthy, but this was believed to be more of a marketing tactic created by a Japanese company in 1965 than a scientific one.
Several researchers found that women who averaged 4,400 steps daily had a 41 percent lower mortality rate than those women who averaged 2,700 steps. It was also shown that mortality rates even lowered the more steps one would take, and eventually tapers off at 7,500 per day. [2]
Simply walk in the park in the morning and evening, and take the stairs instead of the elevator at work. Aiming for steps per day is more of a measurement to track your goals and progress.
Lunchtimes don’t need to be just for eating. You can use the time to get some valuable air, light, and exercise. I usually walk for half of my lunch break – the other half I leave for eating.
This is a great thing to do, as freezing these foods means they’ll last until you’re ready to eat them. And of course, you can freeze them when they’re at their peak, so they’ll taste great when defrosted and/or cooked. This technique is also a superb way to enjoy healthy fruits and veggies outside of their normal seasonal availability.
Too many people put their health and diet focus on how many calories they are consuming every day. But a healthy diet is not just about calories.
For example, there is a big difference between eating a handful of raw nuts and the same calorie amount of cake. Sure, the latter may taste better to you, but nuts will always be the healthier choice.
One simple way to boost your intake of healthy foods is to add an extra serving of greens to each of your meals. If you normally eat burgers and fries (not recommended!), start adding a portion of peas or a green salad to your plate. Over time, you can start increasing the greens and reducing the junk food.
I’m sure you’ve spotted people at work who go to the gym most mornings. They certainly know how to start their day well, but watch their habits afterward. Often they sit down all day at their desk, and no doubt go home and chill out in front of the TV.
While going to the gym is commendable, don’t make it your be-all and end-all. Get out in the fresh air and natural light and move your body the way nature intended by walking and running.
From time to time, carbs go out of fashion. We’re warned they’re bad for us and we should avoid them. However, no-carb and low-carb diets usually end up as fads. That’s because carbs are actually an excellent source of energy for our bodies.
Of course, our ancestors lived and thrived on carb-heavy diets for thousands of years. Just make sure you’re choosing healthy carbs instead of refined carbs.
Not all fats are the same. Some are good for us, some are not. Which are the healthy fats? If you stick to cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil, nuts, and avocados, you’ll be getting the essential nutrients you need – in the healthiest forms available.
A healthy person’s stomach is the size of a fist, while an unhealthy person’s stomach can be the size of a football. It’s a shocking fact. The cause of the grotesque stomach expansion is overeating. When this is done regularly, the stomach starts to stretch. Consequently, the person needs to eat more and more to maintain that full, satisfied feeling.
How to avoid this? Always eat a little less than you think you need or would like. This will keep your stomach at its natural size – and your body at a healthy weight too.
There are benefits to intuitive eating, including building a better relationship with food.
Have you heard of meat-free Mondays? This is exactly as it sounds, no meat is eaten every Monday. If you’re a big meat eater, then meat-free Mondays are a great way to reduce your meat intake immediately. And it will also introduce you to the delicious flavors available in vegetarian and vegan meals.
We all know that sugar is bad for us, yet, most of us still consume masses of it every single day. The problem, of course, is that sugar tastes great. So good, in fact, that we literally become addicted to it.
Now, if I told you to go ‘cold turkey and cut out sugar completely from your diet tomorrow – you almost certainly wouldn’t be able to do it. That’s why I recommend a reasonable and attainable goal of halving your sugar intake. You can do this through simple steps like reducing or cutting out sugar in tea or coffee, stopping adding sugar to your cereals, and choosing healthier snacks (see No. 2).
The average American adult consumes an average of 77 grams of sugar per day, three times more than the recommended amount for women. [3]
Soft drinks are typically full of sugar (or artificial sweeteners), coloring, and other nasties! They may taste good, but they’ll leave you feeling bad. Instead, ditch soft drinks and switch to drinking mineral water or filtered tap water. Your body will thank you.
I used to come into the office and drink tea or coffee all day. I never thought about drinking water. Then I started to notice that some people brought in large, reusable water bottles that they kept sipping from throughout the working day. I decided to give this a go, and I was amazed by how easy it was to drink in excess of 500ml of water every day.
And the best thing? I noticed that I felt more hydrated, more focused – and definitely healthier overall. Try it for yourself, and I’m sure, like me, you’ll never come to work without your water bottle.
This ties in with my earlier comments about calories (see No. 6). Some people – perhaps including yourself -– are very worried about their weight. They check their weight in the morning and at night. If the scale shows lower weight, they’re ecstatic. But if the scale goes up, they instantly feel depressed.
Now, aiming for a healthy weight is a good thing. But, it should be there because of regular exercise and healthy eating.
You might be putting off exercising as you don’t like going to the gym or running in the cold weather. When exercise is fun, you’ll be more motivated to do it regularly. Here are some suggestions:
People who over-exercise tend to age quicker than they should. [4] Most things in life come down to balance, and exercise is no exception. Over-exercising for months and years will deplete your body of its vital energy – leaving you drained and feeling out-of-sync.
In today’s age of Netflix and YouTube, it’s all too easy to find yourself watching just one more video. Pre-internet, you’d have probably gone to bed two or three hours earlier than you currently do.
My suggestion? You have an alarm to wake you up in the morning. How about setting an alarm to notify you when it’s time to turn off the TV and get yourself to bed?
Sleep is a powerful restorative – so make you’re getting an adequate amount of it.
Technology is a great thing. It enables me to type these words – and for you to read them. But let’s be honest, it’s all too easy to become addicted to our TVs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Most people stare at one of these devices for most of their morning, afternoon, evening, and beyond. It’s a non-stop world of emails, SMS messages, news feeds, social media updates, etc.
My advice? Make sure you step out of this cycle of distraction by having regular breaks from your devices. For example, why not switch off all of your devices when you’re eating with your friends and family? Make conversation your focus, instead of being absorbed by online stuff.
Being outside has been found to have a profound effect on your mental well-being, mainly due to exposure to sunshine increasing your serotonin levels. Research has also found that spending even a short amount of time around nature boosts your mood. [5]
Being in a state of positive anticipation and expectancy can increase your happiness level according to a study published in the Official Journal of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies. [6]
Planning something you enjoy and take comfort in, whether it’s a trip, a planned run, meeting friends or curling up with that book you’ve always wanted to read can keep you from dwelling on any negatives.
Meditation is probably the most talked about concept in the happiness camps, and it has good reasons to be synonymous with good mental health. Studies have shown regular meditation practices reduce stress, anxiety, and health issues.
The main reason is it can help reduce overthinking and create a more mindful mindset. It can come in the form of just sitting quietly, yoga, prayer, or purposeful breathing.
Endorphins are chemicals in the brain that basically reduce the perception of pain. When you move your bodies, these are released and essentially tell your brain that all is well. Even if it’s just getting up from your chair, dancing around when doing the housework, or taking up a regular exercise routine, these actions can increase the feel-good chemicals and elevate your mood.
People who continue to learn into adulthood have greater overall well-being. This could be because the brain is constantly being refreshed and rewired but also the sense of achievement, optimism, and distraction it creates.
In other words, it gives you purpose and focus, increasing your ability to cope with stress. So learn a new language, take up painting or enroll in a course you’ve always fancied doing to create more mental well-being.
Kindness may be seen as just good manners but being genuinely kind towards others increases your own happiness as well as theirs. Positive social interactions, no matter how small they may seem, boosts your feel-good vibrations.
Giving compliments with pure intentions, holding a door open, or offering to pay for a stranger’s coffee will keep you feeling good for the rest of the day. According to science, receiving a compliment lights the same part of your brain the same way if you would get paid a monetary award. [7]
Do this on a regular basis and you’ll keep your positive mindset topped up as well as create happiness for someone else.
Sometimes people’s mental well-being declines because they get used to being around people who bring them down. This can damage their self-esteem and self-worth, but they often don’t associate this with others. You are the sum total of the five people you’re around the most.
Ask yourself, are these five people supportive, kind and fun to be around? If not, it may be time to rethink your relationships.
The dangers of too much social media are commonly said. The comparison game can cause you to feel deflated and like a failure if you’re not living how others are currently living. This in itself is a reason to have a period of detox from your phone or computer.
The digital world, as much as it enhances our lives, can take away our present moments and allows us to miss what’s really going on around us. Detoxing will give you that sense of freedom of time to do other things that will boost your mental health.
Sleep often gets ignored when we’re living busy lives, but that’s no excuse. Getting adequate sleep is paramount to an optimum healthy mind. Long-term chronic sleep deprivation can cause diabetes, heart attack, and high blood pressure. heart failure or stroke. Other effects can also include reduced immune system functions and lower sex drives. [8]
More sleep equates to a sense of peace and motivation through your day instead of stress and anxiety.
Low self-worth or self-esteem can cause people to believe that they can’t do things by themselves. The need to always have someone to do things with can create a sense of neediness and lack of self-love. Going off and doing things by yourself builds confidence and a sense of freedom.
Don’t be afraid to be alone and make time for yourself; it’s a wonderful way to really reflect on yourself and have a breather away from others.
Gratitude has been found to increase happiness and reduce stress creating a more positive mindset. People often get caught up on what didn’t go well in their day, even if the majority of what happened was positive.
A good habit to initiate is to recall your day and note all the things that were great – an easy commute to work, the tasty food you enjoyed, a smile from a stranger, or a message from a friend.
Body language is tightly connected to our mindset. When you slouch, it subconsciously creates the overall feeling of hostility, sluggishness, and negativity. When we sit or stand up straight, it creates a feeling of power and confidence.
Laughter is powerful as it reduces stress levels, improves mood, and even short-term memory. Laughing together with someone is probably the best kind of laughter, but just watching a funny TV show or even laughing by yourself can do the trick.
Writing things down is very powerful because in the act of writing, the brain processes what’s being written down more slowly, and so it becomes a kind of therapy.
It can help you process emotions and identify difficult areas or limiting beliefs that continuous overthinking makes worse. Writing down goals and dreams can bring about a positive boost, and making lists of past achievements can help show you successes in your life.
Any loving animal can increase your feelings of positivity in small and meaningful ways. They decrease loneliness, get you active, create loving bonds, keep you present at the moment, and give you purpose.
According to science, spending quality time with your pets can help increase hormones associated with pleasure (dopamine), lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels, and have proven to help lower blood pressure. [9]
While routine can keep us comfortable, it also creates a sense of mundane life and can result in depression. Making just small changes in your routine can trick the brain into thinking you’re doing something completely different. It could be taking a different route to work, walking instead of taking the bus, going somewhere different for lunch, or getting up slightly earlier in the morning.
Changing things up creates variety and opens you up to different experiences and opportunities.
Being a tourist in your own town or city is not something people tend to consider. Pretend you’re visiting for the first time – what neighborhoods would you visit? Where would you eat? Doing this can help you appreciate where you live and gain a different perspective on a familiar place which helps open up the mind.
Forgiveness can be a hard concept for many. But a lot of our angst is caused by our inability to let things go and move on. This doesn’t mean condoning what someone has done but just dropping the negativity around it and moving forward.
Studies have shown that forgiveness protects against stress, and forgiving yourself helps to release any baggage and self-hate and create a happy life.
As social beings, we thrive on connection. When you’re feeling depressed, the last thing you want to do is talk or reach out to others. Keep in mind that talking to people, even just short conversations with friends or in support groups, can repair your sense of disconnection immensely.
Relationships with others build a sense of belonging and self-worth so make time to connect with someone.
This is a great way to examine how you move through your day. How does your breakfast taste? How do your legs feel when you’re walking? Where did the ingredients for your lunch come from? What emotions are you feeling in each moment?
Don’t judge yourself but just be in each moment. Bringing your mind to the present moment can help reduce depression in the process.
A negative mindset creates a negative life. If you’re in this category of seeing the glass as always being half empty maybe question why you think this way. It could simply stem from beliefs you’ve picked up but understand there is always a choice in how you see things.
