Post: Getting Healthy Isn’t a Phase–It’s a Lifestyle

Everyone tells themselves that they want to follow healthy habits so that they can live a much happier and fitter lifestyle. Unfortunately, many people overlook the importance of adopting those habits as part of their lifestyle. Instead, they treat it like a phase that they only need to maintain for a few days or even weeks. They’re not thinking about the importance of maintaining those habits for a long time–and that’s a problem that needs to be fixed.

In this post, we’ll be discussing a few things that will help you realize the importance of approaching healthy habits with long-term goals in mind and how you can stop thinking about it as a temporary phase.

Source: https://21ninety.com/7-dope-black-female-fitness-gurus-to-follow-on-youtube

Exercise isn’t just about going to the gym

Not everyone that is healthy goes to the gym. This is because you can get exercise from everyday activities–you don’t need to work out in a formal way! Anything from just walking to the store for your groceries to gardening is a valid way to work out, increase your heart rate, and ultimately get healthier. Sure, people that are above their ideal weight will likely need to do exercises at home or go to the gym and work with a personal training professional, but the reality is that exercise doesn’t have to mean going to the gym.

Say no to bad choices

Perhaps one of the simplest ways to develop healthy habits is to start saying no to bad choices. While simple in theory, the reality is that it’s actually quite hard to do things like avoid fast food and stop smoking. These are habits that have probably been ingrained in your lifestyle, making them really hard to get rid of. However, if you’re willing to put some willpower behind it, you can very easily overcome these bad choices and start making healthier ones. If you need more support in breaking bad habits or unhealthy behaviors such as excessive alcohol consumption or self-medicating with prescription or illegal drugs, look into Aetna Insurance drug rehab coverage to see how much you can expect to be covered when seeking help.

Surround yourself with healthy advice

Healthy advice is going to change the way you approach fitness, dieting, and health. Whether it’s listening to the best orthopedic podcasts or following a content creator on YouTube that focuses on fitness, you need to surround yourself with healthy advice so that you have an easy time picking up good habits from other people. Thankfully, this is easy because you can listen to podcasts at any time and you can read articles on healthy living while commuting.

Pay more attention to what you eat

It’s extremely important that you start paying more attention to what you eat. You don’t need to go as far as counting calories, but it does help you read labels and see how large portion sizes should be and if something you’re eating is more unhealthy than you think. This is extremely important because it helps you make better decisions when eating certain foods, and it also helps you understand what you’re putting in your body. Once you start learning more about nutrients, you’ll find that it can be easy to make good food choices and avoid bad ones.

Add some variety to your healthy lifestyle

Lastly, don’t forget that it’s important to add a bit of variety to your healthy lifestyle so that things don’t get boring. Don’t just eat the same foods every day and make sure you’re trying different types of exercises on a daily basis so that you can keep things fresh and interesting. If you stick to the same workout routine or the same foods every day, then things can quickly get dull and you’ll find it hard to stay motivated. Variety is the spice of life and you should definitely aim to mix things up now and then.

It’s fine to make mistakes and indulge now and then

Now let’s talk about some of the more practical things to keep in mind. First, make sure you give yourself some chance to enjoy indulgent food and be lazy now and then. Don’t force yourself to stick to a strict routine; give yourself some breathing room so that you can enjoy the things that you want. Doing this helps you maintain your motivation and if you plan it as a reward, then it can actually motivate you to stick with your healthy habits.

Just don’t make it a habit

But of course, don’t make it a habit. If you keep taking cheat days or you keep indulging in unhealthy foods then you’ll throw away all of the hard work that you put in. Make sure you limit how many cheat days you have and don’t overdo it. If possible, try and look for treats that you can enjoy which won’t ruin your calorie counts. You can try sweeteners or low-carb versions of your favorite treats. But again, don’t overdo it on these either–just practice everything in moderation.

Remember to have fun with your exercise

You should also remember that you need to start having fun with your workouts if you want to maintain those habits for a long period of time. If you don’t enjoy your exercise then it’s going to feel like a chore every time you workout. Make sure you find fun and enjoyable ways to exercise and consider gamifying it if possible. There are many smartphone apps and even video games that focus on fitness, so try something new and don’t be afraid to branch out a little.

It’s a long-term thing, not a phase

So to conclude; a healthy lifestyle is all about building habits that you can maintain for a long period of time. Make sure you look at your diet and your exercises and try to have a bit of fun with it. Look for different meals to try, engage in various sports and activities for fitness purposes, and explore all of the different options you have to get fit and healthy. You don’t have to repeat the same sets of exercises over and over for an entire year just to get fit–you can learn to add a bit of variety to your healthy lifestyle so that it never gets boring and so you’ll always be motivated to try harder.