The Department of Health and Human Services has defined a healthy lifestyle as a multidimensional approach to living. Not just a physical exercise and diet plan, a healthy lifestyle is a daily process that encompasses positive behaviors in all aspects of life, including emotional, spiritual, mental and social functioning domains.
Physical Fitness
"Wilderness Medicine" notes that moving in healthy patterns throughout your daily life constitutes a healthier lifestyle than isolated bouts of working out in a fitness facility. The key to this principle is to constantly keep moving during your daily activities.
Physical exercise can be separated into the categories of strength, power, endurance, balance, cardiovascular fitness and flexibility. A truly healthy lifestyle encompasses a multitude of physical activities which incorporate more than just one area of exercise. For instance, engaging only in running exercises your cardiovascular system and endurance, but it does nothing for strength, power or flexibility. Rock climbing on the other hand will increase your strength, power and endurance, but your cardiovascular system and flexibility will be lacking. So it is important to constantly modify your physical activities.
Diet and Nutrition
An important part of a healthy lifestyle is eating a diet full of nutrient-dense foods, according to "Integrative Medicine." For instance, a diet high in vegetables, especially those that are high in carotenoids such as dark leafy greens like spinach, carrots and sweet potatoes, and in fruits promotes a healthy immune system.
The Department of Health and Human Services indicates that a healthy diet includes eating whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat or fat-free milk or milk products, lean meats and other protein sources. Per every 1,000 calories, you should consume at least 1 cup of fruit, 1 cup of vegetables, and 1/2 cup of whole grains, while limiting your intake of saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars and alcohol. It is important to avoid recreational drugs, smoking and chewing tobacco.
Mental and Social Functioning
The Department of Health and Human Services indicates that mental health and proper social functioning are essential to your well-being. Maintaining this aspect of a healthy a lifestyle includes avoiding or managing stress.
Stress has a devastating impact on mental and physical functioning. It is important to identify and eliminate stressors, develop appropriate coping strategies and maintain healthy relationships. Other aspects of a healthy mental and social lifestyle include engaging in creative pursuits, taking time for meditation, participating in intellectual learning activities and spending time with loved ones.
Spiritual Well-Being
According to "Palliative Medicine", spirituality is recognized more as an individual experience which may or may not include religion. Spiritual factors center in one's relationship with religion or a higher power, while your relationships make up the social aspect of your mental lifestyle. Developing your spiritual well-being can include prayer, meditation, writing in a journal and reading spiritually up-lifting books, depending upon your perspective. Healthy spiritual well-being is characterized by a strong sense of peace and elimination of fear, according to "Integrative Medicine."
References
- "Primary Care: Clinics in Practice"; Stress and Health; Michele Larzelere, Ph.D.; December 2008
- "Textbook of Family Medicine"; Robert E. Rakel, M.D.; 2007
- "Palliative Medicine"; Declan Walsh, M.D., et al.; 2008
- "Wilderness Medicine"; Paul Auerbach, M.D.; 2007
- "Healthy People 2010"; Healthy People Launches 2020 Goals; Michelle Sullivan; Dec. 3, 2010
- "Integrative Medicine"; David Rakel, M.D.; 2007
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