HEALTHY HABITS
9 Healthy Habits That Changed My Life and Might Do You Some Good, Too
If it takes twenty-eight days to form a habit, you should add one of these healthy habits to your regimen each month.
As the saying goes, old habits die hard, and it’s often very difficult for us to begin the new habits that will help us slink away from our old ones. But, like anything in life, practice makes perfect and by implementing a few daily changes every day over the past several years, I have found incredible success in obtaining and retaining peace, happiness, and overall stability, purpose, and understanding. The following are some of the activities, beliefs, and mantras I have folded into my daily life that has been extremely helpful and have yielded amazing results.
1. Daily Walks
While going through a particularly depressing time, my best friend suggested I begin taking daily walks to shift my mood. I was hesitant at first since I was never the kind of person who just, you know, walked. But, the day after he made the suggestion, I tried it — and loved it! Soon, I invited my then-teenage son to come along with me on these daily walks and we were able to utilize that time to talk about life goals, plans, and daily events. We even began taking photos of things we saw and created a photo album in honor of our walks together. My mood lifted, my body felt good, and my relationship with my son grew even stronger.
2. Nightly Reading
Many there is not enough time to read. After all, we have children and jobs, spouses, friends, and well, ourselves to take care of! Around the time I began my daily walks, I also began doing a lot of soul-searching and honesty exercises with myself. There were things I wanted to do that I just wasn’t doing, and reading more books was one of them. I wanted to read more spiritual guides and learn more about Buddhism. I became interested in people like Eckhart Tolle and wanted to know more about The Dalai Lama. I wanted spiritual feeding and needed to make consistent time in order to get it. So, I implemented nightly reading. Every night before bed, I committed to reading just one chapter a night. I got the information and healing I needed, I slept better and evolved as a human being.
3. Bedtime Meditation
During times of stress or excitement, I found it difficult to get to sleep on time. I would lie in bed, hour-after-hour, tossing-and-turning until finally, I just passed out. By the time I got to sleep, it would be in the wee hours of the morning and when I awoke, I’d be exhausted. Well, around the time I began exploring Buddhism and His Holiness The Dalai Lama, I also began listening and reading the teachings of Deepak Chopra, and this led me to his meditations. On YouTube, I found many different kinds of Deepak’s soothing recordings, designed to assist in transcendental meditation. Later, I also found many of them available to stream on Apple Music. One evening, just before bed, I chose a recording, closed my eyes, and listened. Before I knew it, it was morning! Every evening after that, I made bedtime meditation a part of my ritual. It has helped me sleep more soundly and longer. I wake up feeling better rested and ready to tackle my day.
4. A Gratitude Journal
My partner, my lover, and my best friend is a wonderful man who has given me so many gems, some of which you will find on this list. One of my favorite things he suggested to me is the incorporation of a gratitude journal into my daily ritual. Each morning before I get out of bed, I write down ten things for which I am extremely grateful in a little notebook that I keep on my bedside table. It’s just small enough to travel with, so I never leave it when I am on the go. I began this practice on October 19, 2014, and nearly six years later, I like to look back at all my blessing and how all of them add up to one big, beautiful life.
5. Nightly Tea
Every night, around 9pm, after we’ve had our dinner and cleaned the kitchen, I get into bed with a steamy cup of hot herbal tea. I choose a calming, sleep-inducing tea such as, Chamomile with Lavender, Soothing Caramel Bedtime, or SleepyTime from my local grocer. It signals to my body that it’s time to wind down, that the day is over, and that it’s okay for me to let go — tomorrow is another day. This is the time I use to read books and catch an episode or two of The Golden Girls or Frasier. Sometimes, I use this time to be with myself if I feel I need alone time, or I spend this time catching up with my love. Either way, teatime soothes my soul and sends me to bed, peacefully.
6. Quiet
I have always been a nervous person, rattled by noise and movement, so I like things around me to be quiet and calm. The only things that stand to disrupt my day are my electronics and the people on the other end of them, so I make it a point to unplug. As a general rule, my phone is always on DND (do not disturb) except when I am expecting a very important business call. In such a case, once I have received that call, the phone returns to DND. My laptop and tablet are also on silent, by the way, and the only noise I contend with during the day is the noise I either make or decide to let in. I spend more time reading and writing, researching, and making plans. I am never distracted and no one has the power to upset my day with their excessive need for chatter. I am balanced and calm, all day long.
7. Physical Exercise
Some of us are waiting for life to get better before we start exercising. The truth is that life won’t get better until we start exercising. It’s a simple case of the chicken or the egg. Physical activity, no matter how simple, makes a substantial difference in a person’s life. For me, it is a time of the day that is just mine. I am alone with my thoughts, with my gratitude and my grievances. A fifteen-minute power walk around the neighborhood or an hour on my indoor cycle is all I need to work out my frustrations or thank God for it all. I love the energy and the endorphins exercise gives me and the way my body looks and performs as I become more active with each passing week.
8. Keeping Up with Business and Technology News
One of the ways I stay sharp and abreast of what’s going on in the business world around me is by staying up-to-date on business and technology news. Whether you are an entrepreneur, someone dreaming or planning on becoming one, or someone who wants to know how to do your job better, this is a habit that will greatly serve you, too. Whether spiritual, emotional, physical, or professional, information is king, and the more information you have, the better decisions you tend to make. Business magazines and subscriptions like Inc. and technology websites like TechCrunch are a great place to start. Open your mind and your life to success stories and page after page of motivation. Learn new things and put them to work for you!
9. Eating a Clean and Healthy Diet
One of the biggest reasons people feel sluggish, moody, and dazed most of their lives is because of their diets. Back in 2011, I changed my diet and saw a significant change in my life, as well. I resorted back to the way my grandmother used to and still does things in the kitchen. Born and raised in the Virgin Islands, we made fresh food every day, picking fruit from trees in our backyard and getting our fish fresh from the surrounding sea. Maybe I’m no longer surrounded by fruit trees and a sea full of fish, but there is plenty of fresh, organic farms and fisherman in and around Los Angeles. There are farmers markets every few miles and a Whole Foods, Sprouts, or Trader Joe’s on every other corner. Changing my diet was easy and sticking to it is a breeze.
I Keep it Simple By:
- Eating meals I love, cooked at home, with fresh, clean, and organic ingredients.
- I cut out most sugar, only buying it when I am treating myself with a homemade pastry. I have replaced cane sugar with coconut or beet sugar, Trulia, or honey, depending on the recipe.
- I cut out milk and only consume a small amount of cheese (which I love) each month, decreasing the amount of mucus stored in my body and, therefore, exponentially decreasing my chances and occurrences of illnesses.
- I eat what I love, but in moderation, and enjoy cheat days several times a month.
- I’m not hard on myself. Instead, I am eating smarter, healthier, and the positive effects can be seen in everything I do and especially my looks — the essence of The Gorgeous Girl’s Guide!
