“To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear”- By Buddha
As the quote suggests, health is the most important element of our lives that keeps us going. Hence, we should work towards maintaining good health. Here are some important tips for maintaining our health and fitness –
1. Wake up early in the morning
It was said by our ancestors “Early to bed, early to rise make us healthy wealthy and wise”. It holds true at present time as well try to wake up before sunrise and feel the freshness of air and energy of “dawn”. This will help you to be active and sustain energy levels for all day long.
A quick walk in the nature to soak in the freshness will create magic in your mood and set the right prelude to face the challenges of the day.
2. Stay hydrated
The fact is that 70% of our body is made up of water. So it’s must for us to drink at least 2 liters of water every day. Adding to it other liquids like coconut water, lemon water, butter milk, lassi, sugarcane juice etc (specially in summers). It will keep yourself hydrated throughout the day.
Try to avoid caffeinated and aerated drinks. Though they are liquids but are dehydrating and score low on nutritional values.
3. Exercise regularly
Exercise sets the metabolism of body so to boost your metabolism be regular in doing exercises, yoga or aerobics. It will keep you not only fit but helps your body to defer ageing and staying young.
There are many excuses to avoid it but if you find a like minded partner it will help in maintaining the continuity and keep you motivated.
4. Avoid long sitting and stay active
The office and work culture forces us to sit for long hours at a place and remain static, avoid long sittings at a single stretch. Long sitting leads to modern life style disease like obesity or type 2 diabetes.
If you are into a profile where long sitting is required then at least try to stand for three minutes every 1-2 hours to break the continuity.
5. Have small frequent meals
Ever watched an infant taking meal, they only eat just enough to fill in their stomach. By no force they can eat more, but as we grow old, we start forcing our stomach to hold more and from here starts the rising curse of obesity. The key to keep your belly in shape is to keep your portions small and eat every 2 hours, this will make you healthy.
Enjoy food by chewing it gradually and eating slowly, it actually helps the internal system realize when to stop and avoid overeating.
6. Eat seasonal fruits
Season is the gift of nature and so are the seasonal fruits. Try including them in your daily intake as a mini meal. To get the maximum out of them make sure to eat them as the first meal in the morning or after work out. When fruit is eaten in the day time, make sure that the difference is 2 hours from any other meal.
Eating fruit with full stomach or along with any other food item turns the sugar in them to triglycerides which is not good for the body so avoid it.
7. Eat fresh foods
Freshness is awesome so always encourage yourself to eat freshly prepared food and avoid stale food items as much as possible. The nutritional value of food is best till 3 hours from it is cooked. It is always a healthy alternative to package food.
There are many scenarios when eating fresh food is not possible, in such cases try out with fruits as they are fresh all the times.
8. Meditate
Stress is gradually creeping in our lifestyle and we are getting succumbed to it. To break the chain the need is to practice meditation; it will heal your inner self and will help you to heal from the harmful effects of stress.
The whole idea of meditation is to make you calm and the shortcuts are listening music, connect with nature and spend time with your loved ones.
9. Reduce your screen time
The world is driven by screens (you are even reading the article on one). It had become an integral part of the life now and seems unavoidable sometimes, still by practicing a small tip to refrain yourself from viewing screen/s half an hour before going to bed will help in getting sound sleep.
The illumination emitted from screens interrupts the secretions of sleeping hormones; hence keep you restless in night as well.
10. Follow your biological clock
As we follow daily routine for office or work the same should be done with meal timings. The reason lies with internal biological clock which keeps ticking. It follows your healthy lifestyle to instruct the internal organs to secrete various digestive hormones and juices.
When we follow a regular pattern, the body reciprocates and the food gets fully digested without any traces of acidity or other stomach discomfort.
By following these tips, you will inch a step further toward achieving you goal of staying fit and healthy.