Top Ways to Feel Healthy

Being healthy has a wide range of benefits: the prevention of chronic diseases, living longer and taking fewer medications. However, feeling healthy is just as important. Living to 100 means nothing if your joints ache everyday or you find it difficult to breathe. Combining how you feel with your actual state of well-being can give you a wonderful reason for opening your eyes each morning.

Eat Healthy

The food you eat plays a large role in how you feel. Whole grains, for instance, provide you with longer periods of energy. Fruits and vegetables provide your body with the vitamins and minerals it requires to function, while reducing your cravings for unhealthy sweets. Foods high in sugar, such as candy bars, donuts and pastries, cause your blood sugar levels to rise and fall through the day, wreaking havoc with your energy levels. Consuming too much salt -- more than 2,300 mg per day -- increases your risk for high blood pressure and can leave you feeling bloated. Portion control is important as well. Use a salad plate when you eat. This prevents overeating, which can leave you feeling uncomfortable and lead to unnecessary weight gain.

Regular Exercise

Exercise has myriad benefits. It aids in weight loss and/or weight management, relieves stress and helps prevent the onset of chronic diseases. When you are low on energy, exercise can give you the boost you need to make it through your day. It transports the oxygen your muscles and tissues rely on to rejuvenate them. You can even use exercise to improve your sex life, according to MayoClinic.com. Men have a reduced risk of developing erectile dysfunction while increased arousal is the plus for women. When you feel good about yourself, it can make a difference in the bedroom. Pick an activity you enjoy and have fun with it. Dance, play with your kids, take a walk with your friends or take a family bike ride.

Quit Smoking

Tobacco use results in 30 percent of all cancer deaths and causes 87 percent of deaths from lung cancer, explains the American Heart Association. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD, is not a disease many consider when inhaling smoke from their cigarette, though. More than 12 million deaths in the U.S. are a result of this disease, which causes both chronic bronchitis and emphysema. These conditions make it difficult, if not impossible, for you to breathe. If you want to feel healthy, quitting smoking is a great place to start.

Practice Yoga

You don't have to be a size zero to practice yoga. No age limit exists, and it's OK if you can't place your leg behind your head. It is about practice and relaxation; a connection between your mind and body. This connection helps bring peace and relieve stress and anxiety. Different styles of yoga exist, hatha being the most common and most popular for stress management, explains MayoClinic.com. Attending a yoga class at your local gym or community center might be the easiest way to determine the type that best suits your needs. However, all types offer benefits such as stress relief, managing chronic health conditions, weight loss and improved flexibility, strength, balance and range of motion.

Get Enough Rest

Sleep deprivation can leave you feeling irritable, make it difficult to function and lead to medical conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, explains The Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School. It can lead to long-term mood disorders and decrease your body's ability to fight infection. Additionally, it can reduce your life expectancy by 15 percent when you sleep five hours or less per night. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends seven to nine hours each night.