Five Practical Ways to
Jumpstart Your Health
Provided
by American
Council on Exercise
Six out of 10 adults in
the United States live with a chronic disease, while four in 10 have
two or more. What if we could start
to reverse this trend? What if
you could improve your health and
decrease your risk for chronic disease in
just a few steps? Many people don’t know
how to start a healthy lifestyle or how to start eating healthy. Consider trying out
this simple, straightforward and
efficient five-part jumpstart toward optimizing whole-person health and wellness for
the long term.
1. Manage Chronic Stress
Stress can be a factor in high blood pressure,
diabetes, skin conditions, heart conditions, arthritis, anxiety and more. And, it’s no
mystery that both acute and chronic stress appear to have a considerable impact on the immune
system. Creating a positive
mind-body connection is an
important component of
mitigating stress. Here are a few
approaches you can use to help manage
stress and strengthen the
mind-body connection.
Mindfulness: Mindfulness involves
focusing on the present moment while noticing your thoughts and feelings
without judgement. Studies of individuals who have used mindfulness therapies
have shown positive changes in areas of the brain concerned with stress. In
fact, some evidence connects physiologic improvements with
mindfulness,
including decreased anxiety, depression and pain, and increased energy, immune function and
cognitive capacity.
Mindful
eating: Mindful eating can
be an effective way to help regulate the
stress response. Avoid
watching TV, scrolling on your phone or performing other distracted activities. Instead, place the attention on how your food
looks, smells and tastes, and chew thoroughly.
Breathing focus: One form of breathing that may decrease anxiety and depression is 4-7-8 breathing.
·
Start by ensuring your
back is straight. Purse your lips,
and let your thoughts pass.
·
Exhale entirely through
your mouth.
·
Close your mouth and
inhale through your nose while counting to four.
·
Hold your breath for
seven seconds.
·
Exhale completely
through your mouth for eight seconds, making a whoosh sound. This counts as one
breath.
·
Inhale again and repeat
the cycle three more times.
Box
breathing, which is described
in the video below, is another technique that may help you connect with your breath. Another option is to simply take 10 deep breaths—breathe
in fully, then out through your nose.
Avoid
the slump: Some evidence suggests that, compared to a
slumped posture, adopting an
upright posture can improve mood and
self-esteem and may be a simple behavioral strategy to help build resilience. There are many at-home exercises that can
improve posture. Consider this above-the-head chest stretch:
·
Standing or seated,
raise your arms above your head.
·
Gently squeeze your
shoulder blades and open your chest by moving your elbows and arms backward.
·
Move your hands to
various positions—behind the head, top of the head, above the head
and down.
·
Hold each stretch for
15 to 30 seconds and perform two to four sets regularly.
2. Get Moving
Current physical activity guidelines call
for adults to achieve a minimum of 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity, or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity
aerobic physical activity, along with moderate
or greater intensity muscle-strengthening
activities for all major muscle groups on two or more days
every week. Unfortunately, only about
one-fourth of
adults in the U.S. meet these guidelines.
Tracking your progress, either on your own or with
an app, can be helpful. If you prefer to work with an expert, simply search for an ACE Certified Personal Trainer. Before you know it, you’ll be
meeting the guidelines and hitting your goals.
3. Focus on Nutrition
A
healthy eating pattern is essential to overall health and protection against
chronic disease. But for many people, changing their dietary habits can seem overwhelming. What do I
eat? How much? How can I make it work with my schedule and lifestyle? What’s
right for me? One of the most effective ways to transform your plate is
to consume nutrient-dense foods, such
as vegetables,
fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, whole grains and lean proteins. That may seem like a lot of dietary changes
at once, so let’s narrow our focus.
Only
about one in 10 adults meet the Dietary
Guidelines for fruit or vegetable consumption, which recommend 2 .5cups of vegetables per day and 2 cups
of fruit per day if following
a 2,000 calorie per day eating plan. In
keeping with the theme of starting with small, manageable changes, make a goal
to consume more produce daily.
4. Get More Sleep
Sleep is
essential to every system in the body. Unfortunately,
myriad factors directly
compete with sleep, and many people do not get enough. In fact, adults who get fewer than seven hours of sleep are at higher risk
for chronic disease and health conditions. Additionally, a lack of sleep is
connected to higher stress levels, physical inactivity, poor nutrition, weight gain, impaired
immunity and more. With busy
lives, it’s important to employ your own personal
strategy for ensuring quality sleep. Behavioral approaches include getting daily
exercise, eating healthy foods, limiting caffeine and alcohol, and being
consistent with bed and wakeup times.
Consider
developing a bedtime routine to set the stage for sleep. This may include a comfortable room temperature, reading,
listening to calming music, reducing light exposure and ensuring the bedroom
is dark and tranquil. Avoiding blue light, which suppresses the body’s release
of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin, is especially important.
Interestingly, a National Sleep Foundation poll showed
that 90% of Americans use an electronic device in their
bedroom within an hour of trying to fall asleep.
If
you find yourself scrolling through your phone, working on your computer or
watching TV—all of which emit blue light—try
to refrain from those activities for at least 90
minutes before bedtime. Set a
goal, and even a reminder, to peacefully conclude each day.
5. Make Social Connections
The
quality of our social relationships is another factor that affects our
health. In fact, people who have supportive and close connections generally have lower incidences of chronic disease. In addition, social isolation has
been shown to significantly increase risk of premature death from all causes
and is linked to higher rates of depression, anxiety and
suicide.
Making
social connections can be as simple as greeting a neighbor in the street or
making a phone or
video call to
a friend or family member. Reaching out to people you know is inherently more
comfortable, but there are many ways to expand your interactions.
·
Arrange a regular
walking group with friends. Remember to take a break from your phones and engage.
·
Sign up for a culinary
medicine cooking class. You’ll learn how to cook healthy food while
enjoying the company of others. Community-based cooking
classes have been shown
to be positive influences on socialization, self-esteem and quality of life.
·
Volunteer. Helping
others can boost your psychological well-being.
·
Register for a group
exercise class. You’ll benefit from the feeling of belonging and
camaraderie with other participants.
·
Spend time with animals. Pets can
play a role in fostering connection and overall health improvement. Social interactions with dogs may increase levels of oxytocin, a hormone linked to warm feelings.
Putting It All Together
It
is clear that our lifestyle
choices have a considerable effect on our health and well-being. Embarking upon many health changes simultaneously may seem daunting. Instead, consider
starting with manageable goals; you’ll find
that the behaviors can
complement each other. Your incremental
progress will eventually lead to impactful, long-term whole-person
health results.
Plan for Health
and Wellness
To get on the right path toward health
and wellness, prioritize a few key areas, including the following:
·
Reduce
stress through multiple mindful methods.
·
Get
moving by working toward goals based on the
physical activity guidelines.
·
Focus
on nutrition and
experience how fruits, vegetables and lean proteins can transform your palette and support your health.
·
Secure
more sleep by
avoiding devices that emit blue light at least 90 minutes before
bedtime.
Make social connections by seeking out opportunities to be around others.
AUTHOR
Justin
Fink
Justin
Fink, MS, is the owner of JF Health Wellness, an evidence-based company focused
on encouraging healthy living and enhanced overall well-being through positive
behavior change. He holds a Master
of Science degree in kinesiology
and is a National Board
Certified Health and Wellness
Coach (NBC-HWC), as well as an ACE Certified Personal Trainer and an ACE Fitness
Nutrition Specialist and Weight Management Specialist. Fink also possesses extensive
health communications experience.