7 Simple Ways To Manage Your Health

1. Sleep well

Getting enough sleep is essential to managing your health. Whether you choose to get eight hours of shut-eye a night or just squeeze in seven, it’s important that you make time for it.

Getting good sleep can do wonders for your memory, mood, and decision-making skills. If you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, here are some tips to help make better choices when it comes to getting a good night’s rest

Maintaining a good sleep schedule is essential to managing your health, and research suggests it may help with nearly everything from easing anxiety to preventing depression.

If you’re having trouble sleeping, practicing mindfulness exercises can help you calm down and feel more rested, even if you don’t fall asleep any faster. It’s also important to avoid bad sleep habits that can interfere with your body’s internal clock.

For example, it’s best not to exercise too close to bedtime or use electronics right before trying to fall asleep. In addition, find ways to relieve stress during your day by using relaxation techniques like deep breathing. Sleep well each night and wake up feeling refreshed and focused on what matters most — you!

Getting enough sleep is one of the best ways to manage your health. We’re constantly growing and developing in our sleep, and are more likely to get sick if we don’t get enough of it.

It also works as a buffer against stress — just look at all of those sleepy cats! If you’re not sleeping well, there are plenty of things you can do to fix it (like incorporating a sleep-inducing essential oil blend into your nighttime routine).

2. Eat healthily

Don’t focus on getting all of your nutrients from one food source. Ingesting an excess of any vitamin or mineral can lead to negative health effects. Also, cut out empty calories and eat foods that are nutrient-dense, meaning they have a lot of vitamins in small amounts.

This will help you get all of your nutrients in a healthy amount without going overboard. Foods like fruits and vegetables are great examples of nutrient-dense foods.

If you want to add more protein to your diet, be sure to do it slowly so that you don’t overload your body with too much at once and negatively affect yourself in other ways as well. Start by adding one egg into a recipe that requires two eggs rather than adding four eggs at once.

Eating healthy is one of life’s most important tasks. We all know that eating right can help us live longer, healthier lives — but it’s easy to succumb to poor eating habits when we have other priorities in our daily lives.

The trick is learning how to eat a balanced diet while simultaneously leading a busy lifestyle. As much as you’d like to deny it, you are what you eat. If you fill your body with nutrient-rich whole foods and avoid highly processed junk food, chances are your health will be just fine.

The American Heart Association recommends a diet high in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. Stick to that plan if you want to improve your odds of living a long healthy life.

3. Listen to your body, know yourself

If you’re having trouble managing your health, take a step back and examine what’s going on in your life. For example, don’t ignore pain or discomfort — those are ways your body is trying to tell you something.

You may have tightness in your chest that could indicate heart disease or chest pain could point to cancer. But at other times, these symptoms may be caused by stress or anxiety.

Be aware of how much rest you’re getting each night — don’t lie awake stressing about things that are eating away at you mentally and emotionally.

This may sound like a no-brainer, but it’s essential to maintaining good health. If you don’t pay attention to your body and its signals, you can ignore early warning signs of illness or injury — and then be sorry later.

Listen to what your body is telling you and take care of yourself by eating right, getting enough sleep and exercise, being cautious when engaging in risky behavior (such as drinking alcohol), and remembering that everyone has bad days from time to time.

If you’re feeling worn out, listless, or ill, your body is telling you to slow down. When you listen to what your body tells you and rest when you need it, making time for self-care (which can include sleep, exercise or simply relaxing in a hot bath), it will be easier to get back on track with your daily tasks and responsibilities.

4. Mind your mental health

The old saying goes, you’re only as healthy as your mind. If you spend all day every day in an unhappy state of mind, it’s going to cause problems. If you’re stuck in a rut and feeling down or anxious on a regular basis, it’s time to make some changes. Reach out to people around you.

Make sure you’re getting enough sleep (6–8 hours). Don’t smoke and drink alcohol moderately if at all. Exercise regularly even if it’s just for 30 minutes at a time three times per week.

Take up yoga or another form of exercise that works for you and do so every week. Learn how to manage stress — look into meditation if nothing else works for you.

One of the most underappreciated aspects of our health is mental health. In fact, some research has shown that one in four people are affected by mental illness in any given year.

If you’re currently struggling with an emotional issue, get help — and if you know someone who needs professional support, encourage them to seek out a therapist or mental health professional. Don’t just mind your physical health — mind your mind as well!

What’s most important? The physical or mental health of your body? In reality, both are equally important. If you neglect one, it can affect both.

5. Eat mindfully

This can be tricky, especially for people who love to cook and want to eat what they make. However, we know that eating on autopilot — even if it’s only a few times a week — leads to mindless eating. Paying attention while you eat will help you enjoy your food more and can even aid in weight loss.

Think about everything that enters your mouth and try to keep focused on making each bite delicious so you enjoy it more and continue to notice new flavors as you go.

You don’t have to overeat or clean your plate every time; just focus on enjoying every bite of what is in front of you while being present. You can’t manage your health if you don’t know what you’re eating.

And you probably have no idea how much (or how little) of any one nutrient is contained in that bag of potato chips, those crackers, and cheese, or those two slices of chocolate cake. So when it comes to managing your health, there are only two choices: Eat mindfully or eat compulsively.

Eating mindfully can be tough when you’re on the go, but it is an important way to take care of your health. When you eat mindfully, you pay attention to what, how much, and why you are eating something.

6. Walk in nature

As we’ve covered, humans are an inherently social species, and for a variety of reasons (health being chief among them), experts believe that spending time in nature can be hugely beneficial.

A study in Finland found that adults who spent more time in nature had a lower BMI and smaller waists, while another UK study found that teens who spent time outside had better mental health. How much is enough? According to one report, 5–10 minutes per day of direct exposure to sunlight without sunscreen.

Bonus: Research from UC Berkeley found that certain kinds of green spaces (more on those here) can help us focus our attention — making us way more productive during work hours than when we’re staring at our phones.

When you’re in nature, your mind calms down and your thoughts flow more freely. Experts attribute a lot of outdoor benefits to exposure to green space, including reduced stress and a higher likelihood of exercising regularly.

This benefit extends to your overall health; research shows that people who live around trees and parks tend to have lower incidences of heart disease than those who don’t.

So go find some green space today — or even better, bring it home by hanging plants in your office! A great way to de-stress, exercise, and relax is to spend time in nature. Take a walk on your lunch break or go for a hike on your day off.

7. Practice gratitude daily

Take time every day to think about your daily successes and things you’re grateful for. Research has shown that gratitude can boost your happiness levels, improve your health, help you sleep better, and reduce stress.

It can also help relieve physical pain and make it easier to recover from illness. The benefits are all around you — don’t miss out! Don’t Skip Breakfast:

If you’re concerned about gaining weight or have had a history of yo-yo dieting, then eating breakfast is a key part of your strategy to maintain your ideal weight.

Studies show that overweight adults who skip breakfast are more likely to be overweight than adults who do eat breakfast regularly.

Gratitude is one of the most powerful emotions you can feel, and it has been shown to improve sleep, boost your immune system, and make you feel overall happier with life.

So next time you’re feeling stressed out or down in general, instead of reaching for a glass of wine, meditate on something or someone in your life that makes you feel happy. It doesn’t have to be something big — it could just be that certain pair of shoes that always makes you smile.