What Stops You from Living a Healthy Lifestyle

The ways for living a healthy lifestyle are no secret to anybody. Everybody knows everything about how to live such a life. Most of us are also aware why we should follow a healthy active lifestyle.

A healthy lifestyle prevents stress and diseases. If you live your life in a healthy way you can prevent or delay diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and even death.

If there are so many benefits of a healthy lifestyle then what stops you from living that kind of life?

What’s Wrong with my Lifestyle

I’m not really pointing my finger at you, but it is directed to all of us who are overweight, obese, and those who fail the test of fitness and well-being.

The statistics show that about one-third of American adults and about 17% of American children and adolescents are obese.

In England, nearly half the population of adult males are overweight and 17% classified as obese, whereas about one-third of women are overweight and 21% are obese.

The stats might not be correct but they indeed truly say and show that there’s a problem.

The problem is with something that everybody is doing.

The problem is with our lifestyle.

It’s not only America and England; the rest of the world is catching up and following the pattern. What is going on and why should we be alarmed?

If we do not change our lifestyle, we will suffer and face doom.

Obesity increases the chance of developing stroke, heart disease, certain types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes.

Obesity is directly linked to unhealthy lifestyle. Of course, exceptions are obesity due to genetic factors and complicated medical conditions.

However, even those who’re not overweight or obese also live an unhealthy lifestyle; it’s just that we cannot make it by their appearance.

A healthy lifestyle is one that leads the person towards being fit, active, with a feeling of well-being. Living a healthy lifestyle brings peace and happiness in life in some ways, directly or indirectly.

Components of a Healthy Lifestyle

You might know what really makes up living a healthy lifestyle, but here’s a recap.

What leads to an unhealthy lifestyle are – over eating, not exercising, taking excessive alcohol intake, smoking, and drug abuse.

Even if you do any one of the above as a part of your lifestyle, you inch yourself towards the demons of life – diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, and cancer.

Since this deadly progression happens gradually, one doesn’t sometimes see and feel the negative change going on within the body.

And this is one reason people laugh at and ignore the warnings.

The golden rule for living a healthy lifestyle is DEAL –

• Diet Control
• Exercise Daily
• Avoid Tobacco
• Limit Alcohol

Now, is it a difficult deal to follow?

Obstacles to Living a Healthy Lifestyle

We know why and how to deal with our lifestyle, and yet we’re unable to change it.

Again, what’s stopping you from living a healthier lifestyle?

Our mind.

A healthy lifestyle has to have a mutual understanding and coöperation of the mind and the body. You need to strongly make up your mind to follow the way of being healthy.

The bitter truth is that –

We just don’t want to change. Change is sometimes not comfortable. You need a strong belief and will to change your place, stand, mind, ways, and lifestyle.

We like anything that comes easy. Difficult options require efforts, and we settle for what is available before us, like junk food.

We form some hard to break habits. A behavior pattern followed for a long period gets the better of us or we’re not able to get over it.

We become addicted to certain substances. Once you start smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol, and taking drugs, the mind and body both give up.

Once we take the mind on our side, we can manipulate our thoughts, and fill ourselves with positivity, belief, will to get over the resistance to change, break the habits, and make efforts.

Think positive. Use positive affirmations. Take up a challenge and make a goal to follow. Try to control your urges and desires by diverting your attention.

We need to follow certain routines that help us train our body and mind to adopt the healthier lifestyle over a period.

The Way to Live a Healthy Lifestyle

You need to make smart and wise choices to set your life course to a healthy destination. You need to choose what to eat, drink, how much to work, sleep, and what to do and not do.

Here are some model lifestyle behaviors that may help you get started. You can make check of how many of these you follow in your life.

1. Diet – Eat food that has a minimal amount of unhealthy fats and sugar, and eat in moderation. Have lots of fruits and vegetables.
2. Water – Drink up to 8 glasses of water every day. It washes down the toxins in the body and helps keep up healthy weight.
3. Exercise – Walk, jog, exercise or workout every day for at least half an hour. Cardiovascular exercises are good for the heart.
4. Body weight – Know your weight and maintain a healthy weight as per your age and body type.
5. Entertainment – Have fun in life and enjoy its big and small moments, and be with family and friends.
6. Sleep – Get plenty of sleep or at least 8 hours a day as those who sleep less are more stressed and weight more.
7. Alcohol, tobacco, and drugs – Say no to any kind of addictive practices. Also cut down on your caffeine.
8. Nature – De-stress yourself by being with nature and reduce the use of gadgets and continuous sitting work.
9. Mind-control – Do meditation, breathing exercises, and yoga to calm your mind. Be happy, have the right attitude and a high level of optimism.
10. Hygiene – Maintain proper sanitary practices and lead a hygienic way of life.

Here are some more tips for a healthier lifestyle. I hope you’re doing most of these recommended behaviors for living a healthy lifestyle. I’m certainly doing most of it and I feel the difference.

Now that you’ve read this article, take a pledge that you’ll increase your movements and decrease your food and drinks. I bet you’ll feel the change in a few days.

Change over to a healthier lifestyle for your family and loved ones, who want you to live longer. You can avoid the dreadful diseases if you start being health conscious from today.

I wish you all success in achieving a healthy active lifestyle.

Over to you –

Do you think you’ve a healthy lifestyle? Are you doing all that is required for living a healthy lifestyle? What is stopping you from achieving it? Share in the comments below.

 

Photo credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net