How to Feel Your Best at All Times

We tend to go through life just navigating whatever road that is put in front of us. The biggest problem with that approach is that is when things aren’t going quite as good as we’d like, we’re not going to feel at our best! Knowing that life throws us curves, the smart, sensible approach is to take proactive steps to make sure we’re always feeling great. If we do this, we’ll be better able to navigate the tougher periods of life. I found some useful tips that might make things a little easier if you’ll incorporate them into your life.

Get Outdoors

If you live in an urban area, it’s possible that you’re spending a lot of your time indoors. Heck, if you’re like me, even living in “Small Town USA” it’s easy to just hang out on the couch. While we’re naturally drawn towards getting comfortable and being inside the house, it’s important to remember that a person’s natural environment is actually in nature. That’s where we were for tens of thousands of years, and we’re essentially still the same genetic makeup as back then. Studies have shown that just fifteen minutes of being in the great outdoors is enough to boost our mood. So don’t just rely on an annual trip to your local state park; make being in the outdoors a part of your lifestyle. Some of my favorite hours are spent enjoying the beauty of nature.

Rethink What You Know

A lot of how we live our life is learned during childhood. For many of us, the mindset we learned during those formative years is not one that’s necessarily the best option for us. Take food. Now, I come from a long line of healthily deficient people. My maternal grandparents were absolute country people- I lovingly and jokingly call my family hillbillies. I was raised on fried foods, sugary soft drinks, and deserts. I continued this type of eating well into my adult years. After weighing nearly 300 pounds, I realized that the lifestyle I was raised on, was likely going to kill me. You might have grown up with a particular diet as I did, but have you considered better options? It’s worthwhile reconsidering what you’ve always done, and exploring new approaches to how best to take care of yourself and your body. Read up on different approaches to your food and overall health by checking out websites like nutribraniac.com, and by seeing what foods and diets work with your body. You could feel your amazing best just by making some subtle changes.

Mild Exercise

I know, I know: it’s not always appealing to get out of the house and engage in some exercise. Nobody hates exercise more than me! But it really can make a difference in your overall health and how you feel about yourself. The trick is to not aim too high. For instance, don’t say that you’re going to visit the gym four times a week, because you’ll most likely fail. Instead, try to do thirty minutes of mild exercise each day. Just getting your heart rate up will do you a world of good. This is the way people who live in the world’s blue zones (where people live longest) approach their exercise. When I began to lose weight through counting calories, I also knew it was vital that I started to move. Fitness watches were brand new back then and I purchased one. It basically just reminded me when I’d been sedentary too long and reminded me I needed to move. I’d tell my co-workers, “Nike says go!” And I’d take just a few minutes to walk around our building. Nothing Earth shattering, just a short walk get my heart rate up a bit.

Get Involved

There are some things which, for reasons we don’t quite understand, make us feel good. Giving back is one of these things. There are lots of places that would love to have you as a volunteer. There are adult literacy programs, delivering food to the elderly, or just reading to children will make you feel really good about YOU. If you’re shy- get out of your comfort zone by volunteering. You’ll grow in confidence, meet new people, and get the warm fuzzy feeling that goes along with helping others. Read up on local organizations who might need your help, call them up, and see what they need. They’ll be happy to have you, and you’ll soon realize just what a good decision you made!

Try just a few simple changes in your life and just see how much better you’ll feel!

*Collaborative Post