Staying healthy isn’t just accomplished by skipping junk food and exercising a lot, it’s about finessing those things to maximize their potential for your health and not forgetting about other crucial aspects of wellness like sleep and managing stress. What are some of your tried and true methods for living healthy?
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8 Take the Stairs
Yep, take the stairs. Every…single…time. It won’t take much longer than the elevator or escalator and it’s a great way to burn an extra bit of calories off here and there, while improving your leg strength and increasing your metabolism.
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7 Eat More Frequently
Three square meals a day is a thing of the past. Eat smaller, more frequent meals to keep your metabolism faster and to keep you feeling more energetic.
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6 High Intensity Training
High Intensity Training or HIT is excellent for boosting your metabolism as well. Try a 20 minute cardio workout where every 30 seconds you switch from an extra-quick pace to regular speed. This actually allows you to do a shorter session overall and still get a great workout. These short bursts of intense exercise are like doing sprints and have greater health benefits than regular aerobic exercises.
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5 Get Outside
Getting outside, with around 20 minutes of sun per day as been shown to increase positive thoughts. Plus if you’re outside, then hopefully you’re using that time to be social and/or exercise, both of which can only help.
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4 Face Your Problems
Minimize stress, not by mitigating pain with cigarettes, food or alcohol, but by learning to deal with what you’re stressed about. That way, you can not only enjoy those vices as simple pleasures to enjoy when happy rather than to take your mind off stress, but your minimized stress levels will help you keep weight off since you’ll have lower levels of the stress-producing hormone cortisol which causes you to pack on pounds.
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3 Get Enough Sleep
Getting enough sleep is important not only for your energy and stress levels, but it actually helps you to stay lean as well, whereas lack of sleep can actually make it easier for you to gain weight. The culprit that causes this? Cortisol, again. Keep it at bay.
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2 Let Your Mind Wander
Daydreaming helps with memory and learning. So go ahead and take a trip down memory lane or drift away in a haze of hopes and dreams. Just don’t do it while you’re driving or operating heavy machinery.
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1 Be Social
Having close social ties to people that make you happy can help you lead a longer, more fulfilling life more than anything else. It also helps to manage stress and get better sleep, which are also tied to leading a leaner, longer, healthier life.
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