Changes for health reward
Many times, all it takes to improve your general wellbeing is to make some not-so-drastic changes to your everyday life: no pressure for you to labor at the gym, drag down your calorie intake, or veer from what is comfortable in general. These little things constitute a huge difference toward a healthy lifestyle.

1. Brew coffee at home

One this-minute strategy you can take is to cancel those habitual stopovers at Seattle’s Best. Besides being a pricy habit, ‘caffeinating’ too often at coffee shops lumps thousands of calories upon you – especially when you succumb to the sight of fatty, sugary pastries on display. The solution, therefore, is making coffee at home. The savings would become unmistakable on your weight and wallet.

2. Always floss

A string of nylon can change your world forever. According to dental experts, flossing is your most immediate defense against unhealthy bacteria. Brushing alone cannot remove bacteria and plaque that often accumulate in parts of the teeth unreachable by the toothbrush. If you let plaque add up, it would corrode the bone that keeps your teeth in position. Also, bacteria from the mouth can seep into your blood. Several researches point out that such microbes can worsen hypertension, diabetes and other ills. They can even cause premature birth.

3. Eat every 3 hrs

Protracted periods of hunger won’t do you good nor will it give you slimmer legs. Fact is, enduring hunger for hours only throws your metabolism for a loop. The minute food is served, you eat like tomorrow never comes. So eat when you’re hungry, i.e. three meals plus two in-betweens every day. This tactic would satisfy you to the hilt, preempting the need to binge. Result? Less fat, more lean muscle.

4. At dinner, listen to classical music

So many studies have postulated that the tempo of music you are listening to during meals is proportional to the pace of your eating. One study showed that those who listen to slow music bite food thrice per minute on average – while those who listen to uptempo tunes bite five times a minute. It also found that subjects bite four times per minute in a music-free environment.

In short, if you want to eat slowly and avoid eating humongous amounts of food, play slow jams.

5. Use pedometer

Pedometer, a small device that tracks how many miles you walk or run, is arguably the best fitness tool ever invented. It helps you reckon just how much physical activity you are getting, and as you may know, awareness is the first step to healthy change. By constantly challenging you to become more active in terms of little steps (1 mile = 2,000 steps), a pedometer would improve your health substantially. It doesn’t even cost a fortune.

6. Doze in exercise clothes

Too often, you are poorly motivated to get up and move in the morning before going to work or school. You recognize the need to exercise but are frightened of the act.

To compel yourself to exercise, sleep in your workout attire. Keep your sneakers at bedside too. You would find out that just getting dressed can motivate you.

7. Exercise Kegels

One in 4 women over 18 years old suffer from urinary incontinence or involuntary urination, according to fitness professionals. It props you up for shameful situations. Fortunately, you can do something about it this instant: Do Kegels exercises. These are routines designed to maintain the strength of your pelvic floor muscles. One study found that women who did not perform Kegels were 7 times likely to suffer from incontinence symptoms than those who did.

So how exactly do you perform Kegels? Before anything else, identify the muscles in need of exercising; to do that, you may need to use a tampon or insert a clean finger into your vagina. Tighten your muscles around it and contract. Repeat this 10 times.

8. Check how much vitamin D you are getting

Many physicians have found their patients to be wanting of vitamin D, a very essential nutrient. They warn that deficits of this vitamin gave their patients cancer, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases. The sun is the best source of this vitamin, yet even with much exposure many people still have inauspicious levels of the nutrient.

On your next doctor’s appointment, ask him or her to test your blood for vitamin D levels. He or she may then prescribe you some vitamin D supplements.

9. Opt for steel-cut oats

Instant oats are healthy, but steel-cut oatmeals are healthier, nutritionists say. The latter are more fibrous  and less processed. Either way, oatmeals satisfy and keep you full longer than other types of breakfast.

If you’re in a rush and don’t have time for breakfast, prepare steel-cut oatmeal in the pressure cooker.

10. Compliment yourself

There is a psychological aspect to a healthy lifestyle, and that is deriving happiness from and taking pride in your body. How do you do that when you don’t like how you look? Just train yourself to be in awe of your abilities, i.e. focus on what you can do, not your appearance.

For example, reckon the deft way you swim, dance or run. Or be grateful for your ability to make love. Just being able to build snowmen should be cause for healthy hubris. Think of all your bodily capabilities, no matter how minor, that deserve self-praise. Also, think of at least 10 things you like about how you appear; there has to be one.

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