Leading a better life doesn't mean you have to make sweeping changes in your life. Little changes, implemented here and there, will manifest results over time. If you think about results you would like to achieve, you can work backward and set small weekly or daily goals to work toward those results. Healthy goals might include changing your work or your relationships, or simply getting more sleep.
Healthy Diet
Granted, healthy eating requires a bit more thought than opening a box or a can of something, but a healthy diet can be portable. Toss a container of nonfat yogurt or an apple or banana in your purse along with some nuts or shredded wheat, and you've got about a 300-calorie lunch at a very low cost.
Eating a healthy diet is easiest if you shop the perimeter of your store or buy most of your food at farmers' markets. Keep your dishes interesting by varying the color and consistency of your foods, and introducing a new recipe a week.
Regular Exercise
You have to move, and move every day. Although marathon running isn't required, some form of exercise that gets your heart rate up and causes you to flood your lungs and organs with fresh oxygen, benefits your body always, and in all ways. Ninety minutes of sustained exercise per day is ideal, but even 20 to 30 minutes helps. You don't need special equipment, and you can break the time into little increments, if necessary. Television commercial breaks make great toning or jogging-in-place breaks.
Healthy Relationships
Your relationships with family, friends and co-workers need time and attention to thrive, and healthy relationships aren't always going to be smooth relationships. Conflict happens, but the methods used for resolving conflict should be fair and equitable. Your ability to love, forgive and compromise contributes to the health and integrity of your relationships. Knowing you have people you can count on, and who hold you in the same regard, makes you feel loved and needed.
Meaningful Work
Working at a job you want to go to every day is a dream for many people. Meaningful work that contributes to society or the global populace helps you feel a sense of purpose and greater fulfillment than a job you couldn't care less about. If you're stuck in a job because you need the safety and security of the paycheck it offers, consider volunteering or working part time in pursuit of your passion. Social service organizations often need volunteers in every aspect of the organization. Maybe your regular job skills could be used for a higher purpose.
Rest and Relaxation
You have to turn the world off. Adequate rest and relaxation, which includes sleep, is key to mitigating the effects that stress has on your body. Heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure can all be traced, in part, to high amounts of stress placed on your organs. Whether you're eating high-fat food on the run or sleeping too little so your body has no chance to repair, skimping on relaxation may help you get more done during waking hours, but in the end, your health will suffer.
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