Feeling chunky, tired, and out of shape? Know you should be creating better habits, but not sure where to get started? This post is for you. Here are some top ways to improve your health and feel better ASAP:
Stop smoking
This is the number one tip for a reason- smoking is terrible for your health, and leads to a host of diseases and unpleasant health repercussions. If you smoke, you may have noticed that you’re always sick. This is because smoking actually impacts your immune system, making it more difficult to fight off colds and the flu. Of course, quitting nicotine cold-turkey can be extremely difficult. That’s why it’s a good idea to consider making the switch to e-cigarettes. These are often made with nicotine combined with vegetable glycerin which helps you to slowly wean yourself off the addictive substance.
Get moving
Getting more exercise doesn’t necessarily mean you need to join a gym (although this is a great way to improve your health). You can easily get into better shape and burn more calories by simply incorporating more activity into your day. If you can, consider parking further from work so you’ll be able to get more exercise walking to and from your car. You may even want to consider ditching the commute and biking to work if this is doable. If you find yourself constantly eating lunch at your desk, pack a sandwich and go eat it outside- followed by a walk in the fresh air.
Focus on nutrition
Improving your health doesn’t mean you can never eat the foods you love. It simply means that you’ll need to cut down and only eat them occasionally. If you’re hoping to lose weight, you need to be prepared to focus on 80% of your effort on the food you’re eating- you simply can’t out-exercise a bad diet.
Consider fasting
Fasting is becoming hugely popular- ask around, and you’re almost guaranteed to discover that at least one of your friends and family members are using intermittent fasting to overcome insulin resistance, lose weight, and feel better. With IF, you still get to eat the foods you love. If anything, this can be a more satisfying way to eat- since you can eat larger portions in a small amount of time. Then, once your eating window is closed, you’re done eating for the day, and your body has more time to work on itself- and more time to burn fat instead of just glucose.