5 Easy Health Practices

With so many of us working from home offices or non-traditional workspaces, finding simple, achievable exercises for your mental and physical health is essential.

Here are a few easy, repeatable habits for building physical and mental strength every day, especially during the workday. These practices can help create greater productivity, clarity and efficiency while decreasing stress.

"Everything we do is practice for something greater than where we currently are. Practice only makes for improvement." — Les Brown

We all know the old saying "practice makes perfect." Let's change the perspective a bit: practice makes progress. These five recommendations, practiced regularly, will help you improve your health both mentally and physically. Perfection is a nice idea, but it can get in the way of progress. Let's work toward progress.

The big five

1. Get adjusted. Stay consistent with seeing your chiropractor, especially when you feel good. Chiropractic is the process of detecting and correcting subluxations (misalignments) that affect how your body communicates and functions. It's always better to find a subluxation before symptoms or dysfunction occur.
2. Exercise. Try to get 30 minutes of exercise a day. It can be split into smaller sessions: 10 minutes each before breakfast, lunch and dinner. The goal is to get your heart rate up and keep it up for the whole workout. This releases chemicals in the body that lift your mood and ease stress, and it improves muscle and organ function.
3. Meditate. With all we deal with daily, find time to quiet the mind and focus on being. Find a quiet room or a spot outside, take your shoes off, sit, stand or lie down, and focus on your breathing. Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth, and let your thoughts drift by like clouds. Deep breathing helps oxygenate the body, and the quiet helps refresh the mind.
4. Diet. Cutting out processed foods, sugars, artificial ingredients and alcohol creates less inflammation and supports proper organ function. It can help you feel lighter, clearer and more connected. Hydration is key too: drink half your body weight in ounces of water a day. Proper hydration helps prevent headaches and lethargy, and can even support weight loss.
5. Sleep. Proper sleep is essential. Put your phone, tablet and screens away at least 45 minutes to an hour before bed. Reading, writing, drawing, singing and other creative outlets are much better for your mind and body before bed. Limit outside light, and try a white noise machine. Naps help too: keep them to 15–25 minutes to refresh the body and mind and help with productivity and mood.

There are many more beneficial practices. These are a few core ones to start with. Let me know how they change you and your life. Welcome to your LIFE!