6 Key Wellness Habits You Must Adopt
Today our culture seems to be moving away from sick care and into wellness care. Taking care of your body and mind can be one of the best preventative tools you have to preserve your health. Wellness habits can range from mindful meditation to regular exercise. It can be hard to tell which ones are going to have a lasting impact on your overall well-being.
Don’t look any further, we have narrowed down the list of the 6 best wellness habits for you to adopt today.
- Meditation/Prayer
You may have heard of the power of prayer. The power of meditation also is just as great. Prayer and meditation activate the same spots of the brain and studies have shown that nuns who pray activate the same spots in the brain as monks who meditate.
So, why should you do these activities? Forbes magazine notes that meditation can cause physical changes in your brain that will increase learning and memory. Not only that but meditation and mindful prayer can help you quiet your “monkey mind” or that that frantic thought process where you think about everything and nothing all at once. These two things should be part of your life.
- Yoga
This ancient practice is amazing. Not only does it keep you active but it builds flexibility and strength. As you age your strength decreases along with your flexibility. Yoga helps combat this in aging populations. For younger people, Yoga is a wonderful way to stay in shape and maintain positive body awareness.
A study published in Lower Extremity Review showed that seniors who participated in yoga had a smaller chance of fall risk during transitional poses. These are poses like getting up from a chair, walking downstairs, or moving to a seated position. These poses are where there is the greatest chance of fall. Yoga is going to keep you on your feet plain and simple.
- Walking
If you are looking for gentle exercise to promote overall wellness as you age, walking is your one-stop-shop. Walking can be done by anyone, at any time, at any size, at any age, at any fitness level. It is truly an exercise that is perfect for all levels of fitness and can be challenging even for those who are at their fittest.
- Eating the Rainbow
Now, I know that the Eat The Rainbow campaign was designed for children. Don’t get me wrong that doesn’t mean it doesn’t apply to adults. Many adults simply don’t get enough fruits and vegetables in the variety that is going to help them maintain positive health and energy. Nutrition Australia and many other international nutrition agencies want to make sure you get one color from the rainbow daily. This will ensure you get a variety of fruits and vegetables in your daily diet and the vitamins and minerals that come from those wonderful foods.
- Catch Some ZZZzzz’s
Sleep is one of the most important things that you can do for your body. You don’t have to take my word for it. The American Psychological Association published a study on the Sleep Street Cycle. Sleep is directly related to how humans process stressful events. Those who sleep fewer than eight hours a night report having higher amounts of stress in their lives than those who sleep eight or more hours.
If you’re having trouble sleeping, check out sleep hygiene. It is the practice of ritualizing your bedtime activities and organizing your bedroom to make your body more accepting of sleep.
- Talk it Up
The last tip in our wellness tips is to find that good friend that you can talk to and confide in. Reader’s Digest reported that having friends that you could talk to help reduce stress in daily life. People who report they have close friendships have fewer stress responses in their lives than those who feel they have no one to talk too. Next time you are out with your close friend, chat them up, and relieve some stress.
There you have it. The 6 best ways to keep your life wellness centered. It isn’t just about diet and exercise, but about taking care of the whole person. If you start to feel off balance, check this list, and see if there is something, you may be missing in your life.