5 Great Habits to Boost Your Physical and Mental Health

We all want to have excellent physical and mental health.  But achieving that can be challenging!  Busy schedules, illnesses and occasional relationship problems can take their toll on our bodies and our brains.  The good news is that there are habits that you can adopt which will boost both your physical and mental health.

Realize that good habits are the foundation for a good, healthy life.  I know this because I’m now at an age when I’ve been able to observe the way many people live and die.  And what I’ve learned is that our personal habits dictate our quality of life while we are alive, and the way that we ultimately die.

Good physical and mental health habits produce a good life and ultimately, a peaceful death.  And bad habits, like drinking, smoking, over-eating, worrying, anger, and irresponsibility result in a stressful life and an unpleasant demise.

That may sound harsh.  But the truth of the matter is that if you want to live a good life and have a reasonably peaceful demise, you have to adopt good habits.  In fact, we each should be working to adopt increasingly better habits with every passing year.

Below are 5 habits that you can adopt that will boost both your physical and mental health.  Adopt them and see your quality of life improve!

Exercise Every Day

The physical benefits of exercise are numerous.  The most important benefit is that exercise keeps our weight under control.  Realize that extra weight is incredibly hard on our bodies.  When we carry extra weight, the effort to move that weight puts unnecessary stress on our heart and on our joints.  In addition, exercising also makes us stronger and more agile, so that we can carry out daily tasks like carrying groceries and doing housework with ease.

Interestingly, regular exercise also boosts our mental health.  Exercise impacts our mental health in two ways.  First, when we exercise, our bodies release endorphins, which are a “feel good” chemical produced by our bodies that actually make us feel good!  As a result, when you’re on an endorphin “high” from exercise, you feel terrific about yourself and life generally.

Exercise also takes our minds off our worries.  In fact, if you are struggling with depression or anxiety, engaging in physical exercise can help stop the downward spiral of negative thinking.  That’s because exercise requires us to concentrate on what our bodies are doing.  And when we are concentrating on our bodies, our brains aren’t worrying and fretting. 

For example, every day I exercise using videos that I find on YouTube.  I try to choose instructors who do exercises that test my coordination and balance.  When I exercise using these videos, I don’t have time to engage in negative thinking.  That’s because I’m too busy trying not to topple over while standing on one leg!

So, if you are seeking to improve both your physical and mental health, adopt the exercise habit.  And don’t just exercise a couple of times a week.  Exercise daily.  Not only will daily exercise help you to stay fit, but your body will release those wonderful endorphins which will boost your mood like nothing else!

Eat Healthy Foods

Food is fuel.  What you eat is fueling your body, just as gas fuels your car.  And your body runs better on good fuel.  So, if you eat healthy foods, you’ll automatically be more energetic.  You’ll also be less likely to get minor illnesses like colds and flus.  And by eating healthy foods, you decrease your chances of having major health issues, like heart disease and cancer. 

Now I’ll admit that eating a balanced, healthy diet takes work!  It’s much easier to eat processed and pre-prepared foods because they don’t require much cooking or preparation.  But those foods are full of salt and preservatives, and they’re terrible for your body. 

To have a healthy body, you need to eat meals that you prepare yourself from scratch.  That means buying fresh fruits and vegetables, beans and fish (and lean meats if you are a meat eater).  You then have to dust off your cooking skills and prepare those foods in a way that is both healthy and appetizing.

What I can promise is that once you get away from processed foods and starting eating a balanced diet of healthy, fresh food, you won’t go back.  The preservatives in processed foods soon will taste terrible.  Moreover, you’ll feel better on a healthy, balanced diet!  When we eat fresh foods, we feel lighter and more energetic. 

Surprisingly, healthy foods also can improve our mental health.  For instance, studies have shown that foods rich in magnesium, like spinach and swiss chard, can make you feel calmer.  And foods containing omega-3 fatty acids, like wild Alaskan salmon, and the spice turmeric have been shown to reduce anxiety and depression. 

In addition, when we eat healthy foods, we look better, and that helps us feel better about ourselves.  After all, when you eat a healthy diet, you’re naturally leaner which makes your clothes fit better.  In addition, when you eat only fresh food, you’re less likely to have skin issues, like acne.  And going into the world with a healthy, beautiful body gives us confidence!

So, if you are seeking to improve your physical and mental health, don’t overlook the importance of eating a healthy diet.  The food that you put into your body affects both your body and your brain!  Make sure to choose the right foods so that you can be the healthiest and happiest person possible.

Develop a Meditation Practice

The mental health benefits of meditation are numerous.  Meditation has been shown to reduce stress, anxiety and depression.  Realize that meditation isn’t anything more than sitting still and focusing on something immediate, like your breath, a sound or perhaps an object.  By focusing on one simple thing, you clear your mind of the clutter of thoughts currently inhabiting your brain.  And as a result, your mind becomes calmer.

I often liken a mind that regularly meditates to a still pond.  With a still pond, you can throw in a pebble, and there will be a momentary ripple.  And then the pond will return to being still.  In the same way, a mind that regularly meditates may experience something upsetting.  The mind may momentarily react to that experience, but then it will quickly return to its calm, still state.

Not only does meditation improve our mental health, but it has also been shown to improve our physical health. By meditating, you can lower your blood pressure and reduce tension headaches.  Meditation helps us physically because it reduces our mental stress. 

Realize that stress is extremely bad for the body.  For example, many years ago, I went through a period of very high stress, and it was terrible for my body.  I had constant headaches.  My stomach hurt so much that I was sure that I had an ulcer.  And my hair turned prematurely gray.  The physical effects of extreme stress can be profound.  After that experience, I decided to take up meditation as a way to more effectively manage stress and to generally have a more relaxed approach to life.

So, if you are seeking to improve both your physical and mental health, take up a meditation practice.  Work at having a consistently calm mind.  In doing so, you can reduce your stress and be a happier and healthier person!

Get Enough Sleep

One of the most important things that you need to do for yourself is to give yourself enough sleep.  Without proper sleep, your coordination decreases, and you can’t think clearly.  Moreover, a lack of sleep has been linked to an increased likelihood of heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, stroke and obesity.

Realize that a lack of sleep doesn’t just affect us physically.  It affects us emotionally.  When we don’t have enough sleep, we are unable to manage daily stress, and we are more prone to depression.

In fact, sleep is so important to your overall health, that it should be one of your top priorities.  And you cannot allow other people to interrupt it.  So, if your spouse snores, sleep in a separate room.  And if your phone is constantly buzzing with texts and emails, put it on silent at bedtime.  Frankly, unless it’s a life-or-death situation, no one should ever interrupt your sleep!

If you have trouble falling asleep, consider establishing a sleep routine.  Try going to bed at the same time every night and getting up at the same time every morning.  That way your body will be used to a certain sleep schedule and will naturally fall asleep at bedtime. 

You also should stop looking at screens before you go to bed.  They agitate our brains.  Instead, read a book with a peaceful message.  Or quietly meditate on your breath or a sound to quiet your brain before going to sleep.

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of sleep for our physical and mental health.  Make your health your top priority and be sure to get enough sleep every night, so that you can be your best all day long! 

Have Positive Relationships

Whether you are a “people person” or an introvert, it’s important for your health to have positive relationships.  Having positive connections can reduce your stress and boost your self-esteem.  Social connections also have been shown to improve heart health and can lead to a longer life. 

Now, obviously not all social connections are good ones!  Connections with the wrong people, in fact, can negatively impact your physical and mental health.  For instance, there are some folks who constantly complain, criticize or have never ending “issues.”  As a result, they exhaust everyone around them.  Those aren’t the people with whom you want to spend your time.  So, it’s important to choose your relationships wisely! 

However, connections with positive, kind, easy-going people truly can boost both our mental and physical health.  Of course, this isn’t about having 500 friends on Facebook or 1000 followers on Instagram.   Those connections aren’t relationships. 

A relationship requires one-to-one communication.  It requires that you care about that one person, and that they care about you.  You simply can’t have 500 to 1000 relationships.  You maybe can have five.  At most.

And if you have difficulty connecting with people, don’t feel badly!  Human relationships are challenging at times.  But relationships are important, so if human relationships are too hard, consider adopting a pet (time and money permitting).  Our positive relationships with animals are just as beneficial as our relationships with people.

The key is to find someone who you can connect with and care about.  When you do so, you’ll feel like the world is a less impersonal place.  Instead, you’ll realize that you are part of things, and that knowledge makes us happier with ourselves and with our place in the world.  And the happier and more at ease we are, the healthier we are!

If you are seeking ways to improve both your physical and mental health, consider incorporating the approaches above into your life.  If you do, you’ll find that you feel healthier and happier! (To read about the benefits of daily self-care, click here.)