Feeling thankful can actually make us happier and healthier, so don’t forget to appreciate every bit of good in life!
65. Outside for Inside
Soak up the sun—even in the winter. Exercising in the cold is safe, and getting outdoors could help battle Seasonal Affective Disorder.
66. Book for Television
All those zombie shows may not only freak us out, but also give us nightmares. Get a dose of knowledge and read a good novel before bed. It may help us get better sleep too!
67. Meditation for Comfort Food
When stress strikes, don’t grab a tub of ice cream for comfort. Try dimming the lights and meditating for as little as five minutes—it’s totally calming.
68. Yoga for Facebook
Got a spare 30 minutes? Those Facebook friends won’t post any shape-shifting statuses. Use the free time to roll out the yoga mat and work on flexibility and strength while alleviating stress and anxiety.
69. Being Upfront for Acting Passive Aggressive
Roommate forgot to clean the dishes again? Rather than bottling up that anger, be forthright (but nice!). Working out issues is better than building up inner frustration.
70. Breathing for Being a Stress Mess
Calm breathing can boost relaxation and calm the mind. Take a long, deep breath to relax the bod rather than stressing out.
71. Working at a Desk for Working in the Bedroom
Finish that assignment at a desk rather than between the sheets. Working in bed could make it harder to fall asleep!
72. Fun Alarm Clock Song for Annoying Ringer
Who wants to be woken from a peaceful slumber thanks to an irritating beep? (Waking up early is hard enough.) Choose a fun little melody on the cell phone to wake up to instead!
73. Fancy Silverware for Plastic
Let’s get a little classy— even in that shabby apartment. Using some nice forks and knives will add some style to that bowl of ramen noodles, making us feel like real adults.
74. Carpooling for Driving Alone
H.O.V. lane aside, carpooling with a pal can make a morning commute less boring. Besides, it reduces air pollution and cuts down on gas money.
75. Journaling for Emotional Eating
Sometimes a cookie or two can lift our spirits, but writing down our thoughts can be just as therapeutic—no calories involved.
76. Smiling for Frowning
Even when we’re alone, smiling can improve mood. Try grinning in the shower or on the way to work—it may really make us feel cheerful.
77. Color for Drab Shades
Science suggests wearing red can boost confidence and self-esteem. So save the black for the Batman costume and brighten up that wardrobe.
78. Keeping the Same Bedtime for Winging It
Setting a bedtime schedule may help us fall asleep faster, so pick a good time and try to stick to it!
79. Little Milestones for Big Goals
Thinking big is great, but huge goals may take time to reach. Don’t forget the small achievements we can make—they’ll also add up to big, positive change!
80. Clean Workspace for Clutter
Take some time to put away the laundry and organize the paper-piled desk. Having a clean space may make us more organized and eager to tackle the day.
81. Venting to a Friend for Bottling It Up
Sometimes life isn’t all rainbows and butterflies. When sad or stressed, reach out to a trusted friend instead of holding in the feelings. Just talking could make us feel better!
82. Self-Love for Self-Criticism
We often focus on our faults rather than our worth. Stop pointing out the negative and focus on all those redeeming qualities!
83. Focusing on the Future Instead of Dwelling on the Past
Don’t focus on yesterday’s issues. Think of the possibilities and go after that goal!
84. Moderation for Deprivation
We can still be healthy without skipping dessert. As long as we regulate our indulgences, they can help keep that smile around. So go ahead—treat yo' self.
85. Calling a Friend for Texting
Phone a friend rather than shooting them a text. It’s more personal, and hearing a friendly voice may lift the spirits.
86. Honesty for Excuses
The gym wasn’t too crowded, and the bus actually didn’t come late. Skip the excuses—being honest with others and ourselves is the best option.
87. Comfy Shoes for Fancy Footwear
Blisters and sore soles are never fun, no matter how suave those shoes may look. Better keep it comfy in the foot department.
88. Saying No for Over-Committing
Sometimes saying no is hard, but agreeing to too much can be overwhelming and bring on sickness. Figuring out what we can realistically commit to will help keep stress away.
89. Planning for Procrastination
Got a lot to do? Making a plan, rather than waiting ’til the last minute, helps ensure we get things done.
Rest days are a standard part of exercise programs, but they’re not the only way to avoid overworking yourself. Let’s look at the difference between rest and recovery, and when you can bend the rules.
The Reason for Rest Days
Most strength-focused programs like weightlifting either work your whole body and then skip the next day, or else they have you split up your workouts so that, for example, your arms get a rest on leg day. The idea is to let each muscle recover from a workout before you ask it to do the same thing again.
But not every activity works this way. Runners, for example, often run every day, and may only take one or two true rest days a week. But within that pattern, they will alternate days of hard running (like speedwork, hill running, or long runs) with easy runs that feel less challenging to the body.
Other sports may fall somewhere in between, but nobody expects to work every body part to exhaustion every day. Even when elite athletes do workouts every day that look killer to us, it’s because our “hard” is their “easy”. You can bet their coaches schedule in just enough of the easier workouts to keep the athlete’s progress on track with minimal risk of injury.
Rest days and splits help us to pace ourselves. Too much hard running, if you’re not used to it, sets you up for tendonitis and other overuse injuries. And too much exercise of any kind can lead to a syndrome called overtraining where your body may develop flu-like symptoms and disturbed sleep because it just can’t keep up with the demands you’re putting on it.
There’s Nothing Magic About Resting for One Day
Taking a single rest day after a hard workout isn’t the only way to keep yourself from overtraining. There are a few reasons it’s a good rule of thumb, though:
Delayed-onset muscle soreness often takes two days to peak. If you did a too-hard workout on Monday, you might be feeling only a little bit sore on Tuesday and think you’re okay to work out some more. If you waited until Wednesday instead, you would have a better sense of how sore or injured you are. Then you would be able to make a better judgment call about whether, and how hard, to work out again.
Resting every other day means only half of your days will be hard workouts. The other half will be rest days or easier days, so the schedule keeps your total workout intensity manageable.
Mentally, it’s easier to stick to a workout when you enjoy it. Hard workouts aren’t always fun, and you may need to psych yourself up to try something really challenging. It’s okay if you don’t feel up to that every day. Having some easier, almost relaxing days can help you stick to your schedule.
If you can accomplish those goals with another schedule, though, feel free to do so. If you enjoy all your workouts, even the hard ones, slowly include more hard days in your schedule. If you feel okay with that, keep doing it! But if you end up sore or fatigued, listen to your body and put those rest days back in.
If soreness is your problem, be aware that skipping one day may not be the best way to deal with it. Soreness peaking at 48 hours is just an average, and the true timeframe can vary. Your muscles might only feel sore and weak for one day, or if you tried something new and difficult, you might feel it for a week. At the beginning of a new workout routine, you might even need three or four easy days.
Recovery Doesn’t Have to Mean Total Rest
Some people prefer the term “recovery” to “rest” days, because total rest isn’t necessarily your goal. After all, lifting a fork to your mouth is a similar action to a bicep curl, so if you just did a heavy arm day, would you be unable to eat? Clearly, some amount of activity is fine on a rest or recovery day.
This is where you have to calibrate your own sense of effort. If you’re new to exercising and you just did a day of heavy squats, a five mile bike ride is probably not a great choice for the following day. But if you bike five miles to work every day, you should be able to keep doing that even on your “rest” days.
When I did push-ups every day for 30 days, a few people suggested that I was setting myself up for injury by not taking rest days. But as I wrote in that article, I ramped up my fitness very carefully. A few sets of pushups every day is my new normal, and it’s no more taxing to me than a bike ride is to a bike commuter. Some days I might try a more challenging type of pushup or I might do more reps than usual; but I balance out those harder days with, you guessed it, easier days that are closer to my baseline effort level.
As you learn your own strengths and limitations, you too can alter your workout schedule according to what works for you. That might mean you only take one or two rest days per week, or it might mean you do mega-hard workouts and then lay low for a few days. If you’re getting a reasonable amount of exercise in total, and if you aren’t getting sore or injured, you’re probably doing okay.
Lemons are ones of the most beneficial fruits you can consume, with a delicious sour taste which makes it extremely refreshing. Lemons are a rich source of vitamin c, and their fresh juice easily provides the needed daily amount of this vitamin. They are also abundant in electrolytes, copper, magnesium, and potassium. Yet, if you want to enjoy all the health benefits of the fruit, you should consume the entire, unpeeled lemon, and not just a few slices. Therefore, you must try the following recipe for lemon water which can significantly improve your overall health:
Lemon water recipe
You should take a few organic lemons, and slice them in half. Then, squeeze a bit of their juice into a cup of water, and grate a bit of the lemon rind into the zest. Add the zest as well, fill the glass with hot or ice water, and mix it all well.Your lemon water is ready for consumption! Enjoy!
This healthy drink will help your body absorb the nutrients better, it will store insulin, and help digestion by alkalizing the environment.Furthermore, it will boost the metabolism, treat constipation and fluid retention issues, and it will have a beneficial effect on the GI tract. Its consumption will detoxify the body and cleanse it from harmful substances, and strengthen the immune system.
You can head off a lot of your most common beauty concerns simply by downing the right foods. That's right—eating well not only does wonders for your waistline and bolsters your immune system but can also provide some very real get-gorg benefits, such as smoothing wrinkles, giving hair a glossy shine and strengthening flimsy nails.
"Your diet directly affects your day-to-day appearance and plays a significant role in how well you age," said Dr. Joshua Zeichner.
The smart approach, Zeichner said, is to create a plan that includes what he calls "the building blocks of healthy skin and hair"—nutrients, minerals and fatty acids—as well as antioxidants to protect your body from damaging environmental stresses.
Get ready to nab some beauty-boosting perks by tossing these essential face-saving edibles into your grocery cart.
Coffee
Grabbing some java every morning doesn't just jump-start your day—that cup of joe has bioactive compounds that may help protect your skin from melanoma (the fifth most common cancer in the U.S.), according to a recent report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Researchers found that the more coffee people downed, the less likely they were to get the disease: Those drinking four cups daily had a 20 percent lower risk of developing malignant melanoma over a 10-year period than non-coffee drinkers.
Watermelon
The summertime fave is loaded with lycopene.
"This antioxidant compound gives watermelon and tomatoes their red color—and helps skin stave off UV damage," said nutrition pro Keri Glassman, RD, founder of NutritiousLife.com.
Researchers believe that the melon contains as much as 40 percent more of the phytochemical than raw tomatoes; that's the equivalent of an SPF 3, so use it to bolster (not replace) your daily dose of sunscreen.
Pomegranates
The seeds of this wonder fruit are bursting with antioxidants, like vitamin C, that prevent fine lines, wrinkles, and dryness by neutralizing the free radicals that weather skin. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that higher vitamin C intake lessened the likelihood of dryness and wrinkles in middle-aged women. Also in the fruit's arsenal: anthocyanins (which help increase collagen production, giving skin a firmer look) and ellagic acid (a natural chemical that reduces inflammation caused by UV damage).
Blueberries
Boost radiance by popping some of these plump little beauties. Blueberries supply vitamins C and E (two antioxidants that work in tandem to brighten skin, even out tone and fight off free-radical damage), as well as arbutin, "a natural derivative of the skin lightener hydroquinone," Zeichner said.
Lobster
High in zinc, shellfish has anti-inflammatory properties that can help treat a range of skin annoyances, acne included.
"Zinc accelerates the renewal of skin cells," said Dr. Whitney Bowe, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "That's why you find the nutrient in many acne medications."
In fact, research shows that people with acne have lower levels of zinc than people with clear skin.
Kale
On the long list of this leafy green's nutrients are vitamin K (it promotes healthy blood clotting, so the blood vessels around the eyes don't leak and cause Walking Dead-like shadows) and loads of iron.
"Insufficient levels of iron in your diet can cause your skin to look pale, making it easier to spot blood vessels under the skin," explained Dr. Howard Murad, associate clinical professor of medicine at UCLA. To max out the benefits, eat the veggie cooked, not raw.
Eggs
Your fingernails (toenails, too) are made of protein, so a deficiency can turn those talons soft. Keep yours thick and mani-pedi-ready by cracking smart: "Eggs are a good source of biotin, a B complex vitamin that metabolizes amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein," said Dr. Frank Lipman, director of Eleven-Eleven Wellness Center in New York City.
Walnuts
Omega-3 fatty acids (found in the natural oils that keep your hair hydrated) and vitamin E (which helps repair damaged follicles) are two secrets behind strong, lustrous strands—and these nuts are full of both, Lipman said. All you need is 1/4 cup a day. What's more, walnuts are packed with copper, which will help keep your natural color rich: Studies show that being deficient in the mineral may be a factor in going prematurely gray.
Avocado
Like you need another reason to love them: These rich fruits are high in oleic acid, an omega-9 fatty acid that helps skin retain moisture in the outer layer to keep it soft, plump and supple, Bowe said.
Cantaloupe
The sweet melon contains beta carotene, or vitamin A, which is believed to regulate the growth of skin cells on your scalp and sebum in the skin's outer layer, Zeichner said. This keeps pores from getting clogged and causing flakes.
We should never regret too much in our lives. However, there comes a time when we realize there are things that, if we had known them earlier, could have benefited us a lot in our younger years. Maybe we only come to these realisations through personal growth and experience, but sometimes we can go through life not being fully aware of situations until we hit a crisis point that leads us to question whether we truly did or cherished things to the best of our ability.
How often have you thought to yourself I wish I’d known this when I was younger? There’s an overwhelming feeling that if your younger self-had just been more enlightened or aware, then you could have dealt with emotions and situations more readily or just moved forward with a more knowledgeable mindset and perspective on life.
With this in mind, here are 7 important life lessons that will change your perspective and mindset to enhance your experience of life for the better.
1. Be Present In The Here And Now
We spend so much time rehashing the past or planning for the future that we forget to experience the present moment. The present moment is what is happening to you right now. Happiness can only exist in the present moment ‒ the past has gone and the future hasn’t come yet so the present moment is all we have.
Our minds have a habit of running at a hundred miles an hour and this means we are rarely just being in the here and now. Try stopping and looking around you, see what is happening right now, be mindful of where you are right in this moment, or simply be aware of your breathing. Once you do this, your mind will start to open up and appreciate what you have right now and you will even start to feel like time is no longer slipping away.
2. Don’t Rule Your Life By What You Think You Should Or Shouldn’t Do
Society or our family’s expectations tend to make us think there are things we should do ― I should go to university and get that degree or I shouldn’t pursue my dreams because I won’t make the same money as I would working in this dead-end office job. We all have these niggling ‘shoulds’ and ‘shouldn’ts’ circling our minds, but when we make these statements, who exactly are we making these statements to? Who exactly are we trying to get permission from? And why is this acceptable? Living your life the way you want to is the only way to be happy. Stop limiting yourself because of other people’s expectations. It’s your life and no one else’s.
3. Don’t Make Things Bigger Than They Are
Our minds can work against us and through mindsets we develop and fears that take over. We can often make problems much bigger than they actually are. It’s all about perspective. How many times have you thought something was a huge deal but a day, week, or month down the line you don’t even think about it anymore? That’s because your mind likes to focus and blow-up worries and problems that aren’t actually problems.
Next time it happens just take a moment to ask yourself: realistically, will I still be thinking about this tomorrow, next week, next year etc.? Most of the time the answer will be “NO” so eliminate all the unnecessary worry you put yourself through.
4. Face Your Fears More
We all have fears ― some are justified and some are not ― but to grow and really get as much out of life as you can, you need to face your fears more often. Remember that many of your fears are only a product of your mind; they don’t actually exist. When you start to realize this, doing things you find intimidating and scary will actually become easier. The feeling you’ll get from facing your fears head on will be the best and most rewarding feeling you will ever have and, 100% guaranteed, it will always never feel as scary as your mind thought it was going to be.
5. Slowly But Surely Wins The Race
When we’re younger, we tend to aim high and want everything quickly. When we set ourselves goals, we can give up easily when we don’t get the results immediately. Our modern world has conditioned us to expect and obtain anything in a blink of an eye which has led us to believe this can be the same for our dreams, goals, and ambitions.
The secret to success is small steps for big changes. Our goals are there to help us achieve and grow and we can’t do this if things happen quickly with no area for learning or getting a sense of achievement from it. Remember to set yourself small attainable goals that will help towards your dreams and know you are on the right path no matter how long it will take.
6. Stop Assuming What Other People Are Thinking
We can often make huge assumptions about what others are thinking whether they are judging you for something or thinking badly about an opinion you had. The bottom line is the world doesn’t revolve around you. Everyone around you is dealing with their own problems, worries, and insecurities and the chances are, they aren’t paying as much attention to you as you may think. So stop caring and, even worse, assuming what others are thinking. You wouldn’t want anyone to assume what you’re thinking so why do it to others?
7. Appreciate Everything In Your Life
One of the most important life lessons is appreciation. The older we get, the more we appreciate the things in our life including people, experiences, lessons we’ve learned, and even our possessions. Establishing this habit early on the better, because gratitude and appreciation is the true key to happiness. The sooner you can be enlightened to this and integrate this into your everyday life, the more you’ll be able to live in the present moment and be thankful for what makes your life a good one―no matter how small the thing is you’re appreciating.
So, whether it’s the shower you get to take every morning, the nature around you, your pet, that one person who you can talk to about anything, the food in your refrigerator―appreciate it all and realize the abundance that’s really present in your life. This will transcend into the rest of your life and establish the positive mindset needed to live a happy and healthy life; your older self will thank you for it!
If you think emotions aren’t directly correlated with your biological systems, think again!
Humans experience an array of emotions, anything from happiness, to sadness to extreme joy and depression.
Each one of these emotions creates a different feeling within the body.
After all, our body releases different chemicals when we experience various things that make us happy and each chemical works to create a different environment within the body.
For example if your brain releases serotonin, dopamine or oxytocin, you will feel good and happy. Convexly, if your body releases cortisol while you are stressed, you will have an entirely different feeling associated more with the body kicking into survival mode.
What about when we are thinking negative thoughts all the time? Or how about when we are thinking positive thoughts? What about when we are not emotionally charged to neither positive nor negative?
Let’s explore how these affect our body and life.
POSITIVE VS. NEGATIVE
Is there duality in our world?
Sure, you could say there is to a degree, but mostly we spend a lot of time defining and judging what is to be considered as positive and what we consider to be as negative.
The brain is a very powerful tool and as we define what something is or should be, we begin to have that result play out in our world.
Have you ever noticed, for example that someone driving can get cut off and lose their lid, get angry and suddenly they are feeling negative, down and in bad mood?
Whereas someone else can get cut off while driving and simply apply the break slightly and move on with their day as if nothing happened.
In this case, the same experience yet one sees it as negative while the other doesn’t. So are things innately positive and negative? Or do we define things as positive and negative?
CUT THE PERCEPTIONS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE
After thinking about it for a moment you might realize that there are in fact no positive or negative experiences other than what we define as such.
Therefore our very perception of an experience or situation has the ultimate power as to how we will feel when it’s happening and how our bodies will be affected.
While we can always work to move beyond our definitions of each experience and move into a state of mind/awareness/consciousness where we simply accept each experience for what it is and use it as a learning grounds for us, we may not be there yet and so it’s important to understand how certain emotions can affect our health.
“If someone wishes for good health, one must first ask oneself if he is ready to do away with the reasons for his illness. Only then is it possible to help him.” – Hippocrates
We can have an overall positive mental attitude and deal directly with our internal challenges and in turn create a healthy lifestyle or we can be in negative, have self destructive thoughts and not deal with our internal issues, possibly even cloak those issues with affirmations and positivity without finding the route and in turn we can create an unhealthy lifestyle. Why is this?
Our emotions and experiences are essentially energy and they can be stored in the cellular memory of our bodies.
Have you ever experienced something in your life that left an emotional mark or pain in a certain area of your body? Almost as if you can still feel something that may have happened to you? It is likely because in that area of your body you still hold energy released from that experience that is remaining in that area.
I came across an interesting chart that explores some possible areas that various emotions might affect the body (featured above).
When you have a pain, tightness or injuries in certain areas, it’s often related to something emotionally you are feeling within yourself.
At first glance it may not seem this way because we are usually very out of touch with ourselves and our emotions in this fast paced world, but it’s often the truth.
When I’ve had chronic pains in my back, knees, neck or shoulders, it wasn’t exercise, physio or anything in a physical sense that healed it, it was when I dealt with the emotions behind it.
I know this because I spent the time and money going to physio and even though I wanted and believed I would get better, something wasn’t being addressed still. The more I addressed the unconscious thought pattern and emotions throughout my body, the more thins loosened up and pain went away.
When you get sick or are feeling a lot of tightness and pain, often times our body is asking us to observe yourself and find peace once again within yourself and your environment. It’s all a learning and growing process we don’t have to judge nor fear.
YOU HAVE THE POWER
Davis Suzuki wrote in ‘The Sacred Life’, ‘condensed molecules from breath exhaled from verbal expressions of anger, hatred, and jealousy, contain toxins. Accumulated over 1 hr, these toxins are enough to kill 80 guinea pigs!’
Can you now imagine the harm you are doing to your body when you stay within negative emotions or unprocessed emotional experience throughout the body? Remember, you have all the power in you to get through anything life throws at you. Instead of labeling with perception the concepts of negative and positive as it relates to each experience you have in your life, try to see things from a big picture standpoint.
Ask yourself, how can this help me to see or learn something? Can I use this to shift my perception? Clear some emotion within myself? Realize something within another and accept it?
Whatever it may be, instead of simply reacting, slow things down and observe. You will find you have the tools to process emotions and illness quickly when you see them for what they are and explore why they came up. If you believe you will get sick all the time, and believe you have pain because it’s all out of your control, you will continue to have it all in an uncontrollable manner until you realize the control you have over much of what we attract within the body. Joe Martino http://simplecapacity.com/2016/04/the-effects-of-negative-emotions-on-our-health/
It’s so much easier than having to remember to buy them fresh, and then also having to remember to cook them before they turn into gross smelly puddles of goo in the back of your refrigerator.
Toss your frozen berries into oatmeal or eat a few as a sweet dessert. And cook up your frozen veggies as side dishes, in stir fry, soups, and more.
2. Buy a season (or a series) of a very addictive TV show. Force yourself to watch it ONLY while you’re running on the treadmill, using the elliptical, or pedaling a stationary bike.
This was a tip from the story 14 Former Couch Potatoes Share Their Best Tips For Getting In Shape. Try it with 24, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or Pretty Little Liars, or Homeland… or any other show that’ll keep you pretty riveted and desperate to find out what happens next.
3. Eat from small plates, bowls, cups, and jars to help manage your portion sizes.
Some research suggests that you’ll have an easier time with portion sizes (and feeling good about limiting portion sizes) when you eat from smaller plates and bowls. Because when you have a small portion on a big plate, you feel like you’re depriving yourself — but when that same portion takes up a lot of real estate on a smaller plate, you’ll think you’re eating more.
Get the recipe for the almond butter, strawberry, and banana overnight oats here.
4. Or eat from plates and bowls that are a different color than the food you have in front of you, also to help with portion sizes.
Other research has shown that people tend to eat more food when the food is roughly the same color as the plate, compared to people eating food that contrasts with the color of the plate.
5. Prepare a box of grab-and-go snacks on Sundays so you always have something healthy to nosh on every day.
Make sure you take them with you each day. Snacking on healthy things throughout the day will keep your energy up and will keep you from overeating at your meals. Here are 22 healthy and filling snacks under 200 calories for some inspiration!
Always be hydrating! If you need some ~inspiration~ to get your water in, here are 13 easy ways to drink more water every day. OR, you can also back the Kickstarter for HydrateMe, a water bottle that syncs with your cell phone, tracks how much water you’ve been drinking, and glows when you need to drink some more (pictured above).
8. Drink a cup of black coffee before you work out, because it’ll help you burn more fat.
FUN TIP. As BuzzFeed Life previously reported, caffeine in coffee will free up your fat cells for your body to use as energy, according to Tim Coyle, exercise physiologist at ComiteMD. And it’ll also jazz you up a bit, which means you might even work out harder than you normally do. Read 17 things everyone should know about metabolism for some more facts and tips.
9. And eat some protein within half an hour after you work out, so you can build muscles ~faster~.
“When you work out, you break down muscle tissue and your body absolutely depends on protein in order to build that muscle back up. And muscle is the key to increasing your metabolism,” Albert Matheny, C.S.C.S., co-founder of Soho Strength Lab and advisor at Naked Nutrition, told BuzzFeed Life in a previous story. A Greek yogurt could be a good option here.
Vegetables are obviously good for you, so you should be eating them for like a million reasons. But something that some people don’t know is that, due to the high-fiber content in a lot of veggies, they can actually make you feel full and satisfied pretty quickly. Eating your veggies first before you get to the other stuff means that you’ll be less likely to overindulge on things that are less nutrient-dense and filled with ingredients that aren’t so good for you. Read 29 small ways to change your eating habits big time for more tips like this.
14. Leave your blinds open at night, so the sunlight helps wake you up in the morning.
A_teen / Getty Images
This is especially helpful if you’re trying to get into a habit of working out in the morning, btw.
15. Prep your lunches for the week on Sundays so you can just grab them without thinking when you’re out the door in the morning.
Get the recipe for the grilled chicken veggie bowls here.
16. Set an alarm about an hour before you want to be asleep, so you can harass yourself to get moving on your bedtime routine.
Carolyn Kylstra / BuzzFeed
Getting good sleep is one of the most important things you can do for your health. Good sleep involves a few things: Having a regular sleep schedule; actually sleeping for seven to nine hours a night; and having peaceful, uninterrupted sleep. It also really helps if you’re going to bed and waking up at a consistent time every day, BuzzFeed Life previously reported.
Help yourself in more ways than one by making sure you’re in bed at the same time every night (and also make sure that time isn’t like 2 a.m.) Setting an alarm to go off at 10 p.m. can alert you that you should start washing your face and doing everything else you need to do before bed, so you can consistently be tucked in by 11.
17. Lower your thermostat before you go to bed to about 65 degrees for a better night’s sleep.
Chronic stress can wreak havoc on your health, so it’s important to do what you can to limit your stress and find ways to relax and unwind. This restorative yoga pose is one of the three best yoga poses for stress relief. If yoga isn’t your thing, here are 26 genius tricks to help you deal with too much stress, and they’re all super easy. Maybe something on there will speak to you.
