A Game Plan to a Healthy Lifestyle

A Game Plan to a Healthy Lifestyle

It seems like these days we are all looking for a way to improve our health. There are so many different ideas about how to achieve this that sometimes we take it all in and begin to feel discouraged. But the truth of the matter is there are a lot of ideas that are helpful and if we begin to incorporate them into our lives they can become second nature. Just by adding a few healthy alternatives to our diet or a bit more fitness to our lives we can be on our way to a better way of life. There are several ways we can begin to change our outlook and see it more of a lifestyle change rather than a "diet". By looking at it as an adventure instead of a huge mountain we have to climb I think we will all be able to encourage one another with these ideas.

FOODS

It’s one thing we all have to do and sometimes dread, but with a few changes in the way we shop for groceries we will be able to add some healthy choices for our family. One thing I have been trying to do is shop the perimeter of the store first. I find that when I do this, it allows me to zero in on some of the best food choices available. With all this talk about antioxidants in our foods I love to select fruits such as blueberries, strawberries and raspberries along with bananas, pineapple, and apples to name a few. I also have been taking advantage of seasonal vegetables such as acorn squash, root vegetables like sweet and red potatoes, sweet onions parsnips and rutabagas. Of course there are all sorts of other vegetables we can treat our family to like carrots, broccoli, salad fixings, tomatoes and all that good stuff that we don’t want to pass by. By walking the outside aisles we can choose fresh baked goods with whole grains, dairy products that are low in fat such as cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, soy milk or low fat milk. By shopping this way, it will give us a chance to scrutinize the highly processed foods we want to avoid along with high sodium, sugar, high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils to name a few. This one change alone will help us to make healthy choices in the foods we buy.

EXERCISE

This is something that just seems to turn us off sometimes. I’m not sure why this is, but it is almost as if we dread to lift weights, stretch, do a few jumping jacks or even walk! But with a change of attitude we may even find ourselves enjoying life and not even thinking of it as exercise at all but rather as fun! And who couldn't do with some fun? One thing we could do that's alot of fun is to take a drive to a nearby beach, lake, neighborhood park or museum and get out and enjoy the beauty and sites all around us. We can also trick ourselves into a few extra steps throughout the day with a few simple changes in our daily routine. For instance we can park further away while shopping, going to church or visiting friends. We can walk up to the mailbox instead of conveniently picking up the mail as we drive home, getting in even more steps. Many experts agree that even 30 minutes of some form of exercise a day will help us to get on a healthier path. There are other ways to sneak in some exercise as we are going about our daily routine.  We can do a few exercises or even stretch while watching tv. All we need to do is use our imagination and have some fun with it. Hey, it never hurts to multi-task!

The bottom line is that we can all get a better handle on our fitness and health with a few life changes. Any decision we make towards a healthy lifestyle is a decision well made. With a few changes in fitness, food choices and filtered water we should all be on our way to a better year!