Staying Healthy in the Industrial Age

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Staying healthy could be a challenging task for people who devote themselves to work, research or something that  they consider extremely important. Their family and friends usually fade into the background, not to mention taking care of their own health, which such people usually do not remember at all, especially when they are young and have not yet faced health problems. But sooner or later, such people begin to understand the importance of work-life balance. Of course, it’s better sooner than later. If you are faced with the “Freshman Fifteen” problem, when students gain fifteen  pounds during their first year at college, then you are a lucky person because you have a chance to understand the truth sooner than others. In order to stay energetic and healthy for as long as possible, you can try to weave into your life the rules that should become a regular part of your life, along with brushing your teeth and combing your hair in the morning. These rules  include sufficient physical activity, normal sleep and stress management, balanced nutrition and water intake.

First of all, physical activity is very important. The human body needs physical activity to function properly. As a result of insufficient physical activity, sleep worsens, metabolism is disturbed, and the brain works more slowly, which leads to making the wrong decisions. Let’s start from the morning. Some simple Yoga or Pilates exercises for straightening can be done right on the bed, and after a week or two of such exercises you may try a more advanced level. The  daily route may be optimized to walk at least half an hour a day. Periodically, office workers can do simple exercises near their workplace, do some squats beside the table or just do not use the elevator. Ideally, several times a week is necessary to attend gym or cardio training. Installing a fitness application on your phone also can help you track your physical activity and its efficiency. Thus, it is not so difficult to supplement the usual rhythm of life with additional activity, yet an improvement in well-being and an increase in energy will be felt very soon.

Then, the duration and quality of sleep also impact the quality of our life. The majority of recovery and repair is done during sleep time. This is recovery of your body’s muscles and recovery and repair of the brain. With that in mind, it should be at the forefront of importance to get adequate sleep every night for at least eight hours. If you don’t get proper sleep, your body and brain will not be able to function at its full capacity, which means your decision making process will be compromised. Some people cannot fall asleep on time. The reasons may be stressful situations, situations where you can’t stop thinking about problems that are not resolved during the day. There are several ways to fix this. If the increase of physical activity during the day does not help, try meditation, relaxing yoga, reading books. These can help to calm you. Sometimes just increasing physical activity during the daytime may help. Also spend more time in nature with friends and family. Try to find time, at least once a week, for outdoor activities with your family or friends. Fresh air and pleasant memories can help you fall asleep faster during the week. Try meditation to clear your mind when you go to bed. When you’ve had a good night’s sleep, you wake up feeling full of energy, refreshed, and you’re ready to begin your day.

Lastly, a healthy eating habit is one of balance and maintaining proper macronutrient and micronutrient intake. Calories are also very important, and using apps like “Healthi”, “Lose It”, “MyPlate Calorie Counter” will help you tailor your diet according to your physical activity. Healthy eating entails consuming foods across the full color spectrum, and ensuring enough high quality protein is being consumed. Also, it’s very important to drink a lot of water. That helps to stabilize the metabolism. Simply put, you run on water and without this very important fuel, you will not be able to operate effectively and you may even start to develop illness. The quality of your water is also quite important – and I suggest looking at natural spring water as your primary source of nourishment. Keep in mind, filtered water removes the largest spectrum of contaminants of any water treatment process. It does remove the minerals, which you will then need to make-up for with supplementation. Usually busy people have two problems associated with malnutrition. Either they forget to eat during the day, or they eat snacks all the time while working. If you need snacks, try to pre-portion it at least, and do not take with you more than you pre-planned to eat. If you often miss your lunch time, fill it up with vitamins. While healthy eating may look a little different for everyone, eating nutritious foods is essential for good well-being.

Physical exercises, the quality of sleep and a balanced diet affect each other in many ways.  Improving one of these three aspects can help to improve others. If you haven’t taken your health seriously yet, now is the time to start! You can take small steps every day to improve, and over time, they will lead to huge results. Look back in a year and be surprised at how much healthier and happier you have become since you followed the healthy lifestyle strategy!