New Year, New Wellness Routine

A wellness routine is a great way to keep in shape and stay on track with health goals for the new year. Yet, starting one can be challenging in itself, as you have to develop new habits and alter your schedule to make it work.

It’s better, however, to start with the basics. If you overcomplicate the healthy habits you want to implement, you may feel overwhelmed and discouraged. Start small. Even a simple wellness routine can significantly impact your health for the better.

Starting with the basics, here are some healthy habits you can start today!

Get Enough Sleep

If there is one thing you can do to start, we can’t stress how important it is to get an adequate amount of sleep.

As much as we like to stay up late and watch movies or hang out with friends, it’s important to remember that your body needs rest. When you get the proper amount of sleep, you’ll have more energy, and your mind will be alert. Sleep allows your body to restore its energy reserves, balance your mood, and reduce stress.

So, how much sleep do you really need? There are different responses to this question, but an individual should get anywhere from seven to nine hours each night. For some, eight hours is plenty, while others need the full nine. Listen to your body. It will tell you if you need more based on your overall energy levels throughout the day.

Keep in mind that getting enough sleep works better when you’re consistently going to bed at around the same time, as well as getting up. Doing so trains your body to fall asleep faster and to wake up feeling refreshed.

On that note, get to bed before midnight. This way, you get the most out of your sleep. However, your needs or circumstances may require an alternative schedule.

Maintain a Proper Diet

As part of your wellness routine, making changes to your diet by cutting back on junk food, such as sugary sweets or high-calorie foods, will help. Instead, replace them with more nutritional ones.

For example, rather than eating a donut for breakfast (while fun every once in a while), consider having oatmeal with nuts and berries. Or, make an egg omelet with chopped onions, green bell peppers, and tomatoes. Eating a healthier variety of foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner will provide your body with the nutrients it needs to maintain a healthy body and mind.

Also, it’s best to be consistent when you eat and to not skip meals – especially for breakfast, the most important meal of the day. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because your body has slept without food for the past eight hours. It needs to rejuvenate its energy reserves, and eating food is one way it can achieve this.

Likewise, eating lunch and dinner will do the same. In other words, your body needs to restore its energy throughout the day every three to four hours.

We also recommend eating healthy snacks before mealtimes, as it can keep your mind alert and your body energized. The point is not to completely satisfy your hunger so that you’re no longer hungry come lunch or dinner time; it’s better to eat something small like an apple, whole-wheat crackers, or a protein bar – whatever is enough to get you through to the next meal.

When you eat at consistent times, you also prevent yourself from overeating. This pattern allows your body to digest food properly and prevents indigestion.

If preparing a more nutritional meal is not feasible for whatever reason, take an appropriate amount of vitamin supplements as a way to compensate for what your body lacks.

In summary, be sure to add more nutrition to your meals, avoid skipping meals, eat healthy snacks, and pick consistent times to eat. We know that it can sometimes be difficult to implement these healthy habits, so rather than going cold turkey, choose just one or two dietary changes you want to focus on for the month. Make that one switch – whether it’s cutting out refined sugar or sticking to consistent mealtimes – and build up to a proper diet, little by little.

Stay Active

The word ‘exercise’ may intimidate some. Stay with us. You do not have to be the next renowned bodybuilder, but you must stay physically active. Whether that takes place in the form of walking, stretching, doing yoga, running, or lifting weights, there are several ways to meet your exercise goals – you simply have to find your thing!

It may help to start with a simple exercise routine as your circumstances permit. Pick a time each day to spend 30 minutes doing some form of physical activity. Again, consistency is the key, and it doesn’t need to be complicated. Being active keeps your mind fresh and strengthens both your body’s immune system and muscles.

Get Regular Checkups

Even by getting enough sleep, dieting appropriately, and exercising regularly, you can still have underlying health problems. While these tips are bound to help improve your health, they can’t prevent all health issues. That’s why it’s vital to have regular checkups at a primary care clinic such as Elevated Health.

At a primary care clinic, family doctors aid in the treatment and prevention of diseases. They are there to help you lead a healthy life by detecting and treating the early signs or onsets of a medical condition.

Making regular appointments with your family practice doctor will ensure the prevention and treatment of most ailments. They can also provide useful tips for staying healthy and give recommendations if requested. Make it a goal this year to meet with your family practice doctor regularly.

Quick Recap

We’ve mentioned a few ideas and ways to get started with your new wellness routine. For a quick recap of everything we discussed, remember to get enough sleep, eat nutritious meals at consistent times, stay active, and make regular visits to your family practice doctor.

Adding these practices into your wellness routine will not only increase the health of your body and mood but will help prevent diseases and future complications. Happy New Year!