Guest article provided by: healthybodyathome.com
We live in a time and age where a lot of the previously hard physical labor has been automated and where tasty, yet unhealthy food is available in abundance.
Knowing all the above, it’s not that hard to see why obesity has become such a huge problem all around the world.
However, there are a number of things we can do to lose or maintain a healthy weight and to improve our overall physical health. Let’s get started!
5 Quick tips to improve your physical health
Exercise
It seems almost logical that exercising would occupy the number 1 spot to increase our physical, but also our mental health.
Even though it’s kind of an obvious tip, it’s surprisingly hard to be and remain consistent at working out since life happens. Many of us lead busy lives. Working, family, feeling tired,..
Yet, humans are made to move around and exercise, not to be couch potatoes. Even though being a couch potato and relaxing once in a while is perfectly reasonable.
Aim to combine resistance training with low intensity cardio training at least three times a week.
Be mindful of your weight
Being overweight, especially having too much abdominal fat, has been proven to be one of the leading risk factors for developing diseases such as diabetes and heart problems.
The fact is that your body is largely made in the kitchen. So working out on its own will most likely not be enough to get rid of these pesky love handles. This means you’ll have to eat a relatively clean diet, combined with the proper amount of exercise, for optimal results.
Keep in mind that our metabolism slows down with age, which means your body will naturally start packing on more fat mass. Thus, it’s best to create healthy habits early on in your life.
Clean diet
Closely related to the previous point. If you want to stay at or get to a healthy weight, you’ll have to eat a clean diet.
This means getting rid of, or at the very least limiting processed foods, sugar and too much salt. This means cutting out things like soda, pizza, fried food and chocolate. Instead, favor unprocessed foods like vegetables, fruits and unprocessed meat.
If you’re trying to gain muscle mass, then ample protein is a requirement. Aim for at least one gram of protein per kg of body weight for optimal results. Although studies have also shown that increasing your protein intake can help to lose weight.
Get enough sleep
Your body needs sleep in order to function properly. Without an adequate amount of sleep, there is no energy to perform those functions optimally.
It has been shown that being sleep-deprived leads to increased fat gain. This happens due to the cortisol levels rising, which is the hormone that reacts to stress. This increased production of cortisol may lead to your cells becoming more resistant to insulin. Thus, increasing the amount of fat your body holds.
Aim for at least 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Create healthy habits
Our fifth and final tip is more of a summation of all the above. All the previous points are namely examples of healthy habits.
However, there are many more healthy habits you can create like working out three times each week, not drinking soda, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, brushing your teeth twice a day and the list goes on.
Try to create healthy habits early on in life. Because after a while, these at first conscious efforts will become second nature and thus, useful, healthy habits without even having to give them a second thought.
Guest author bio
Kevin Mangelschots is a licensed and practicing occupational therapist, health, and self-improvement writer at www.healthybodyathome.com. He is a sports enthusiast and an occasional gamer to relax and wind down!