Posted by 160516 Steps to a happier and healthier you
If you are happier, you normally are healthier and vice versa. Getting there is not too difficult, it just takes a bit of effort to improve your well-being.
According to Dr. Ronald D. Siegel[1], 40% of what determines our happiness is directly under our control. Contrast this with the findings that a mere 10% of our happiness has anything to do with an outside event either good or bad.
“It’s not events, but our responses to events that determine our level of well-being,”[2] Dr. Siegel says. He went on to suggest these steps that you can take to improve your emotional and physical health.
- The first and most important step to take is to be happy-just like the song says. Remember, “It’s not events, but our responses to events that determine our level of well-being.”[3] You control the majority of your own happiness with your responses to what happens to you.
- Live in the moment, not in the past or future but right now. If you fully embrace the present activities, the enjoyment they bring is increases. This makes you less likely to be thinking or worrying about things in the past or future. Make the most of the moment.
- Keep a daily diary of things you are grateful for, things you have enjoyed doing, of people you liked spending time with…each of these promotes positive feelings, improves your outlook, optimism, satisfaction with life and increases your connections to others. The cycle continues onward.
Now that you have several ideas for becoming happier, we are moving onto the physical part of getting healthier. Once again, the resource is from the Harvard Medical School, this time from Dr. Edward Phillips who is the founder and director of The Institute of Lifestyle Medicine. He also is the faculty editor for Simple Changes, Big Rewards, one of the Harvard special reports.
Total health, both mental and physical, is a combination of the two. The better your mental health, the better will be your physical health, and vice versa. If you are presently engaging in poor habits then your health will suffer. By making efforts to change these unhealthy habits, you will be improving your overall health.
Dr. Phillips says, “two thirds of all illness is the result of our lifestyle choices.” Obviously, two thirds of illness is a large part of our health makeup and one that needs attention if we are to become healthier. His advice now follows.
- You must take the responsibility for your health. This means not only seeing your doctor on a regular basis but also following their advice. Getting the necessary regular exams, screenings, and tests included in this aspect of being responsible for your own health.
- Use your personal strengths to improve your health, for example use the discipline of your personal habits, or make use of the skills of your profession to improve your life. Create great tasting meals from basic ingredients by experimenting with contents. Do something different with your exercise program. If you run, then change your course, add weight to a backpack, find some hills, but change it up. On the other hand, if you lift weights then drastically change the routine around by increasing the reps into much higher numbers than you currently use. Alternatively, lower the rep numbers and increase the intensity up into the 85-100% range for lower number of sets.
- Make small changes in your goals so you see progress each week. Pick out a goal that you know for a fact you can accomplish. One such goal, if you are not already doing any cardio workouts, is to start with doing a cardio exercise for 5 minutes each day.
- Keep track of what you do with a logbook. A daily diary is useful in keeping track of your moods, the food, and drink you have each day, your exercises, and whatever else is important to you.
- The daily benefits you begin to notice will spur you on to even better habits that will most defiantly improve your health.
Each of one of these suggestions is simple to follow and easy to track. By incorporating them into your lifestyle, they will begin the remaking of you into a healthier person.
[1] Dr. Ronald D. Siegel of the Harvard Medical School, an assistant clinical professor of psychology and faculty editor of Positive Psychology, a special health report from the school.
[2] Dr. Ronald D. Siegel of the Harvard Medical School, an assistant clinical professor of psychology and faculty editor of Positive Psychology, a special health report from the school.
[3] ibid
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