Why do attempts to reclaim your health have to be so difficult? A healthy lifestyle means nurturing your body. I mean, what could be more indulgent than that? And while healthy living does require some level of discipline, it also requires a lot of self-care. And self-care feels just awesome.
Not ready to jump into the deep-end with your healthy lifestyle?
Try instituting some of these fun ways to reclaim your health and feel indulgently awesome today!
Walk barefoot – Our shoes drag high levels of toxins into our homes. So ditching the shoes at the doorway is a great healthy habit. Not to mention that walking barefoot grounds your body with the earth. This allows your body to absorb electrons which have a healthy, anti-inflammatory effect on the body. And easing inflammation is a great way to reclaim your health
Snuggle with a pet or a human you love – Science shows that the need to be touched is hard-wired into us from the time we are babies. Studies with animals show that babies will choose to be cuddled over the need for food. Touch is something we physically must have. And so cuddling has amazing benefits for good health.
Eat a bowl of blueberries – Blueberries are full of antioxidants. Specifically, one antioxidant that is plentiful in blueberries that help protect against premature aging. So eating sweet and juicy berries daily are a wonderful step in rebuilding health.
Drink spa water – One of my favorite extra perks of going to a spa is getting to drink the water filled with fresh orange, cucumber and lime slices. There is something about that water that feels relaxing. Drinking it is a blissful way to release stress and reach your water quota for the day. And easing stress levels and hydrating the body are essential steps to reclaim your health.
Eat raw cacao or dark chocolate – Dark chocolate is a great source of anti-inflammatory antioxidants. Add to that that some studies show that chocolate can elicit a similar hormonal response to falling in love. Just make sure to consume in moderation and look at the sugar content. The raw, low-added-sugar, no artificial sweetener options are the only options that are truly health supportive.
Sleep in until noon – You’re very likely getting too little sleep. And sleep deprivation has all sorts of negative health consequences. So, if possible, give yourself one morning a week where you can sleep as long as your body needs. This is more difficult when you have little kids. Parents of young children should take naps when given the opportunity.
Grab the spice shaker – Turmeric is good for liver detoxification. Cinnamon is good for blood sugar stabilization. Ginger is good for digestion. Fennel can relieve indigestion. Oregano can be good for menstrual and urinary tract disorders. Just make sure your dried spices are fresh as spices will lose their potency with time. Consuming supportive spices on a daily basis can play an important role in building health.
Take a vacation – Modern lifestyles can make us feel like the key to discipline is a 24-hour-a-day work schedule. But with time, that can slow us down, create stress-breakdown within the body and cause exhaustion and inflammation. A vacation doesn’t have to mean at trip to the Caribbean if that isn’t in the budget. Any aberration from the constant of your life’s daily demands will help reclaim your health.
Walk in nature – A walk in nature can ease stress, help you become centered and gets your body moving. This is a win-win on many levels. Stress causes inflammation within the body which contributes to weight gain and disease. Exercise is anti-inflammatory, good for weight loss and good for the heart. Just make sure to bundle up in colder weather.
Breathe – Too many of us operate on such a level of stress that we barely even breathe. Try this exercise. Observe yourself as you take a deep breathe. Did you notice your shoulders move? That is an indication of shallow breathing meaning you aren’t fulfilling your basic oxygen needs. Try diaphragmatic breathing instead. Place your hand on your stomach just below your rib cage. Take in a deep breath. You should feel the air push your hand out as you breathe if you are breathing from your diaphram.
How do these practices help you reclaim your health?
They fight inflammation, de-stress the body and nourish. And these are things that many of us need desperately. When we get the feeling that our health isn’t 100% what it used to be, this is an early warning sign of health consequences to come. Don’t let it get to that point. Reclaim your health now. Take time for yourself and create healthy habits like these that are enjoyable and nourishing to your body and soul.
I love this list of fun ways to reclaim health. They sound so indulgent and yet are good for us.
I feel that people often think that being healthy only means deprivation and that is simply not the case.
I wish you were around when I was growing up. I loved walking barefoot which drove my mother crazy. I sure would have enjoyed showing her this post.
The breathing exercise is a good one – my husband got me started on that and it does really work to destress you.
Great tips – just goes to show, reclaiming your health with these easy tips isn’t just fine but in the case of the blueberries and spa water, downright delicious.
Lenie, I remember walking barefoot a lot as a kid too. I didn’t think anything of wandering through the neighborhood without shoes. I’ve had to stop as an adult and now live in a city. Too much glass on the ground. I save that one for the country!
I do the following from this list;
Walk barefoot. I take my shoes off wherever I can and never wear shoes in my home.
Eat dark chocolate
Snuggle with a human – husband or kids
Spices – I only ever cook with these. My husband cannot eat bland food – neither can I for that matter.
Nature walks – I could walk forever
Vacation – yes, yes, yes!
Sounds like you do a lot of these and that you enjoy them. How great!
Great tips, Erica. I’m so glad you included the dark chocolate!
I do need to work on my deep breathing, as I definitely felt those shoulders move up when I tried the exercise. I shall practice more of that!
Doreen, you are in good company with the shallow breathing. Diaphragmatic is something we all do naturally as babies. But most of us must relearn it once we become adults.
Best word for me to describe everything on your list, Erica (and that includes the non-edibles/non-drinkables), is DELICIOUS! Just thinking about them helps gives me a boost. Something else that I find works well is looking up at the sky on a clear night. Seeing those amazing stars helps give me a different perspective, especially on the matters troubling me. I consider: “In the big picture, are my problems really as big a deal as I’m making them out to be?” And “I’m not alone, I’m a part of this, a part of all that is.” Then I breathe. Thank you, Erica, for a wonderful post!
I love that Ramona! Wish I had thought of that. I can’t see the stars that well where I live (a side-effect of city living), but I remember doing that as a kid. It can be just breathtaking.
Great suggestions. I’m going to take off my shoes right now, head over the couch and snuggle with my dog for a bit.
Awww, that is really cute. I hope you enjoyed it!
I love this list. You mention several tasks I love to do like eat blueberries, have spices like turmeric, and drinking spa water. Yum! Thanks for sharing the benefits.
Glad you liked the list Sabrina. It goes to show that healthy living can be fun too.
Oh man, I wish I could sleep until noon. On a good night I get six uninterrupted hours of sleep. I have for years, and it seems to be enough. Then when it starts to become spring and then when the weather shifts into dreary November, I go through a phase where I’ll only get four-hours of sleep a night. That’s rough. My tried and true remedy has always been nature walks. Getting outside and getting away from phone notifications is a good spot in any day.
Jeri, I tend not to sleep much more than 6 hours myself. And I almost always feel rested. But I also always give myself enough time to get adequate sleep for me.
Wonderful suggestions Erica and I practice several of these on a regular basis, in particular, plenty of fresh air and time in nature – which includes quality time wth my dog, and lots of water, although I almost never buy water since our tap water tastes great. The only kind of chocolate I like is dark chocolate but for some reason the last couple of times I’ve tried to buy it I couldn’t find it anywhere. No clue if there’s a shortage or why it seems to be in short supply, but of course now I r-e-a-l-l-y want it just because it’s not available. 🙂
I always imagined that Hawaii would have amazing tasting water. You should come visit Los Angeles (didn’t you say you were from here?) for the dark chocolate. I see it everywhere I go here.
Thanks for sharing these fun ways of reclaiming health. A walk in nature can ease stress, so true. Great Read.
Yes, nature walks are the best. That one is one of my personal favorites from the list as well.
What a fun list! I’m showing my husband since I demand hugs throughout the day (we both work from home–healthy pros & cons to that!). Love dark chocolate and blueberries…never wore shoes as a kid. Lived in the country and the grass was too perfect to cover with a pair of Keds! I do have to wear shoes in the house now and dislike it very much–1. I need the support for my feet. 2. husband splashes water everywhere which leads to wet toes or soggy socks. HA. Love the water and I drink lots of it, but I rarely remember to tuck any fruit into it. Great idea!