Healthy Habits: 10 Daily Habits That Changed My Life

talk about 10 daily habits that have made a really big difference to my life

in different areas such as physical health, emotional health and brain health.

Before we dive in I wanted to say a few things so you know the context. The first

thing is these daily habits have been the result of gradual habit forming over

the last five years- it's not something that happened overnight. It is difficult

to form habits and it does take time. The second thing - although these habits are

daily habits I don't put pressure on myself to do them every day especially

when things get too busy or things are too overwhelming. Sometimes things slide

a little and that's okay. When you're making lifestyle changes it's not about

perfection it's about doing what you can and generally I do try to do these

habits at least three to five times a week IN the times that I'm really

stressed out because I feel that they do help me stay on track and they do help

reduce stress. Anyway enough with the introduction let's get into the habits.

The first daily habit is that I drink a glass of water as soon as I get up. Well

not as soon as I get up -I brush my teeth, I go to the bathroom and then I have a

glass of water. I find that this has made a big difference to energy levels in the

morning. When we're sleeping we're not taking it any water and when we wake up

we can be mildly dehydrated and when we're dehydrated our fatigue levels go

up. There is some science behind this - I'll put it in the description box. So a

good thing to do is start your morning by getting enough hydration. I drink a

glass of filtered water. If I feel like it, I'll add some lemon to it I don't always

do that and it's usually at room temperature but if you like warm water

that can work too. It really is about personal preference but drinking some

water in the morning is a great thing to do for your energy levels. Number two I

meditate for 10 minutes every day. I used to be very skeptical about

meditation when I first started. I didn't really believe in it I didn't think that

there was science behind it but there is actually quite a bit of science. It can

do things like reduce anxiety, it can help you improve your immune function, it

can help reduce pain. There's a lot that it can do I have a few links in the

description box but for me the biggest change is mental clarity and I feel much

more calm. I am not naturally a calm person I may appear calm on YouTube but

I am not naturally a calm person. Meditation - years of meditation has

gotten me to this point and I really do think that there are a lot of benefits

to trying it out. Now if you're a beginner, meditation can seem very

daunting and I have two tips to provide. So the first one is try to just be very

open about meditation in the beginning. The first 10 to 15 sessions for me were

very difficult. I didn't know what I was doing and I felt overwhelmed and I felt

like I was doing it the wrong way. It wasn't until the 15th or 16th session

that I really got into it and I started to see the benefit. So give it time. The

second thing is if you are starting out try guided meditation versus meditation

where you're just doing it on your own. Guided meditation can really help you

stay on track and can really guide you through the process. I use an app called

Calm - I highly recommend it. I love it. There is also another app called

Headspace which you could try out. Number three I go for a brisk walk outdoors

every day. Now I have to say that I live in Canada so a brisk walk outdoors every

day does not happen year-round! It doesn't happen in the winter but for the

rest of the year I do try to get outside because I find it's such a mood booster

to get some fresh air.. to get some sunlight and to be out in the greenery

and there are studies that show that exposure to greenery is good for your

health. As usual, everything's in the description box. Now for me the brisk

walk is not just a mood booster - it's also the way I get exercise. I am NOT a

gym person I have never been in gym person I just don't enjoy it who knows

who the people who enjoy the gym I would love to do that but I just can't I don't

like it so for me getting exercise has to be something that's part

of my lifestyle and I love going up the walk so I started to make my walks my

exercise now the World Health Organization recommends that we get

about 150 minutes of moderate cardiovascular activity week or 75

minutes of cardiovascular activity a walk can count if your heart rate is

high enough so when I'm walking I test my heart rate I have an app on my phone

samsung health is the app that I use and my heart rates usually between the

moderate and thicker zone so my walk actually counts as a workout it counts

as water and activity so that's how I get my 150 minutes of exercise per week

through my walk number four in addition to the walk ayuh exercise so the walk is

great for cardiovascular activity if you're doing a brisk walk or if they're

jogging or running but a well-rounded exercise regimen should include more

than just cardio I like to include some weight training and yoga but I

specifically wanted to talk about weeds there's a lot of women shy away from it

especially because they think they're going to look a certain way if they

train with weights the World Health Organization recommends at the average

adult do at least two sessions a week why is it so important as we age we tend

to lose muscle mass it's a normal part of Aging another normal part of aging is

losing bone density it happens but we can slow that process down with one

thing and that one thing is weight training so it doesn't matter what age

you are it could be in your 20s or 30s it's never too early to start preserving

your muscle mass and preserving your bone density if you're a beginner you

should always speak to a professional learn the proper moves you could do body

weights or free weights but always speak to someone who knows what they're doing

so you don't get injured and then eventually when you know what you're

doing you could always work at a home that's what I do I am NOT a gym person

as I mentioned earlier so I don't go to the gym but I will use free weights and

bodyweight exercises at home if you're interested in the exercise channels that

I follow I have them in the description box below number five I try to eat

something green every day it's rather embarrassing but I will admit that even

as a nutritionist I find it hard to eat greens I did not grow up eating greens

so it's a very foreign concept for me but I do understand that they are very

nutrient dense and it's a good idea to get some greens on a daily basis

especially a variety of greens you are getting a variety of vitamins and

minerals if we're interested in nutrient density score that I have one link in

the description box below now if you're beginner the easiest way to add greens

to your diet really is smoothies I find that that was the best gateway for me to

get into the habit of eating greens if you're interested in how to make green

smoothies taste better I do have a video on it which I will link in the

description box below number six I eat at least two to three servings of

brightly colored fruits and veggies every day this is my bare minimum two to

three I usually try to eat more why is it important to eat brightly colored

fruits and veggies well you may have heard of the term eat the rainbow eat

the rainbow basically suggests eating fruits and veggies from different colors

but different colors mean they have different phytochemicals which mean they

have different health properties some phytochemicals can help with cancer

prevention some can help with liver some can help with metabolism there's

different reasons to have those phytochemicals and it's a good idea to

get a variety so I do try to cut at least two to three servings of fruits

and veggies from those different groups if you're interested in learning more

about eating the rainbow I have a link in the description box below number

seven I listen to relaxing music every evening as a way to wind down so music

has many different health benefits the science is still emerging but what I

found very interesting is that nature sounds and relaxing music can help

reduce stress it can help reduce the stress hormone called cortisol if you're

interested for the science is in the description box so I do try to listen to

something that's very relaxing flutes maybe some nature sounds rustling with

leaves things like that a waterfall those are all really nice to listen to

at the end of the day as a way to wind down and just relax number eight I try

to read or learn something new every day and I love to do this because it's

something that I truly enjoy but there are other benefits to it especially when

it comes to brain health so as we age there is that natural decline in our

memories it happens but mental stimulation can slow down that decline

so for me it's reading I will like to learn new things for you it

could be whatever works for you if you're a reading person read a book

fiction and nonfiction both have their benefits if you're not into reading

learning a new language on an app such as duolingo could work or you could

watch something every day like short snippets on Ted Ed to learn something

new it's all about keeping your brain engaged and stimulated number-9 I try to

spend quality time with loved ones every day and I want to underline the word

quality time because a lot of us end up spending time with our loved ones but

we're on our phones and we're not properly engaged with them they're not

really talking to them it's not good communication and this happens to

everybody it's just the digital age that we live in I used to scroll on my phone

next my husband and I felt like I was spending time with him but that wasn't

really spending time so now no phones properly talked to him I spent time with

my cats - I find that cuddling a pet or a human - can help you release oxytocin

which is known as the cuddle hormone or the love hormone and it can help reduce

stress number 10 I avoid phones in the one hour before bed so I used to be on

my phone right before bed and I found it very difficult to fall asleep because my

brain was all over the place it was very mentally stimulated and phones also emit

something known as blue light and that blue light is something that your brain

thinks is they like so when you're on your phone and that blue light is going

to your brain your brain thinks it's not time to sleep so it won't produce

melatonin very well and it becomes harder to sleep I actually have talked

about this in another video on sleep which I will link in the description box

below but what I tried to do is I switched my phone off an hour or an hour

and a half before bed like flight mode so I don't look at any notifications I

don't look at anything and that way I'm actually able to sleep better I hope you

find this video useful and you enjoyed it if you liked it give it a thumbs up

before you go let me know in the comment box below