Simple investments in your everyday life can help promote overall health by promoting healthy joints, sleep, balanced diet, movement and mental health.
Victoria Calderone
What would you call an investment that involves no risk, requires little money to start, grows more valuable each year, is a proven career booster and can generate hundreds of thousands of extra savings over a lifetime?
The answer: Good Health!
Investing in your health is one of the most important things you can do, especially when it comes to preventative measures – after all, investing in prevention is less expensive than prescription drugs and medical bills for related illness.
Simple investments in your everyday life can help promote overall health by promoting healthy joints, sleep, balanced diet, movement and mental health.
Here are five ways you can start investing in yourself today!
1. Keep exercise shoes in good shape.
This is perhaps one of the easier ways to invest in good health, and perhaps one of the most important, especially for anyone who is active or has goals to become more active. I know so many people who run their sneakers into the ground (literally), and with the potential risk for injury, joint and muscle pain (ever had shin splints? NOT a good feeling!!) it just isn’t worth it. The life of a pair of shoes will depend on the type of exercise you use them for. For example, dancing and side-to-side movement, as well as running long distances can cause shoes to wear out more quickly. Replacing shoes on average about 2-3 times yearly can help to cut down on injury and prevent joint damage due to worn out padding and support.
Helpful tip: I rotate two or three pairs of good-quality shoes to prevent them from “breaking down” so quickly from my workouts every week, extending the life of my shoes just a little bit longer.
2. Eat more vegetables, no matter what your diet is.
Fresh (organic) produce can be expensive, but when it comes to packing loads of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals, there’s nothing that takes the place of fruits and vegetables.
Helpful tip: Purchase from a local farmers market. Farmer’s market produce is local, which means it tends to be fresher and that means more nutrients! Plus, you’re supporting local farmers.
Buy frozen: It’s a great option when your faves are out of season, and it lasts longer than fresh produce.
3. Switch to all-natural household cleaning and skin-care products.
Chemical exposure has been cited as a potential danger for health, so a simple and fairly inexpensive swap you can make is to replace your hard bleach-based products for greener, more natural cleaning products. Or, you can really save money by making your own. Stop in Incentives Organic Salon and Spa for essential oils you can use for cleaning (and SO much more!) plus, organic face and skincare products, as well as organic hair color. Your body will thank you.
4. Track your movement.
Tracking movement has become easy and relatively inexpensive, and is something that everyone can do. I find that often, people don’t realize how much they aren’t moving on a daily basis. So, it’s a good idea to start tracking steps and movement. Movement, heart rate and calories burned can be tracked either using a Smartphone app or by purchasing a fitness tracking device that can be worn; like a Fitbit.
As a baseline, aim for at least 10,000 steps per day.
Helpful tip: The Fitness Incentive Spin bikes have technology that customizes your workout, customizing the difficulty of your ride, distance and calories burned without wearing a tracker.
5. Get more sleep.
This one costs absolutely nothing and can help promote better health, improved focus and productivity, happiness and more. Aim for 7-9 hours nightly. If it’s difficult to reach the goal of 7-9 hours every night, aim to get more sleep in small increments, like adding 15 or 20 minutes extra on a weekly basis and work up to your sleep goal. For many people, one of the biggest barriers is being unable to get to get quality sleep, or stay asleep — if that’s you, try one of the following:
- White noise machine or essential oil diffuser (my favorite!)
- Eye mask
- Bedtime yoga or light stretching
- Chamomile tea before bed
Helpful tip: I usually have some chamomile tea and add a few drops of lavender and lemon essential oils to my diffuser. I stay away from the TV and smartphone at least 30 minutes before bedtime. Instead, I listen to an audiobook or podcast while I sip my tea and perform very light stretches.
With a small investment in yourself, you’ll be feeling like a million bucks in no time!
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About the Author
Victoria Calderone
Victoria Calderone is a Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor at Fitness Incentive.