Invest in Your Health

No matter your age or what shape you are in, investing in your health is one of the most important investments you can make. After all, your body will be around a lot longer than that fancy car, expensive handbag or new iPhone.

Here’s the thing about being healthy. It isn’t always the cheapest option. Choosing to cook a healthy dinner for your family may cost you more than picking up a pizza. Paying for a gym membership will cost more than, well, not paying for a gym membership. However, health is created in the home and at the grocery store in the course of day-to-day living.

People who develop conditions like heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and some types of cancer are cutting their life short by decades. In fact, studies have shown that a poor diet and lack of exercise can reduce our lifespan by as much as twenty-three years. It is estimated that around eighty percent of these cases could be prevented by simply maintaining a healthy weight, exercising daily, making healthy food choices and not abusing alcohol and tobacco.

Remember, there are no guarantees in life. Here are a few ways to invest in your health now.

Work with a Fitness Professional

If you’re new to the fitness world, paying for a personal trainer can seem like a huge investment. I want you to forget about the dollar signs for a moment, and just think about your life. How much would you pay to feel good in your own skin? To build your confidence? To increase your energy and improve your mood? Whether it’s a one-on-one session with a personal trainer, a group fitness class or a gym membership, there are many reasons to invest in yourself. In fact, working with a fitness professional can be one of the best investments you’ll ever make.

Invest in Good Food

Food is fuel for your body. It has a direct impact on how you feel as well as on your overall health. In this day and age, the list of unhealthy foods for us to choose from is endless. Fast, convenient and cheap food is everywhere, it’s easily accessible, and it is almost impossible to ignore. All of this food we hate to love? It’s processed and contains large amounts of added sugar, carbohydrates, unhealthy fats, and salt (sodium).

Get Moving

A hundred years ago, humans were up and moving around more than eight hours a day. Now, more than a quarter of us spend that much time just sitting around. Incorporate movement into your daily routine by getting out of your chair regularly. Take a walk with a co-worker on your lunch break. Park farther away from your destination when you’re out and about. Choose the stairs over the elevator.

Stay Hydrated

This is simple. Drink more water! Staying hydrated helps the heart pump blood to the muscles, facilitates healthy bowel function and nourishes cells. Aim to drink half your body weight in ounces throughout the day. This means if you are one hundred and sixty pounds, you should consume at least eighty ounces of water each day.

Try Intermittent Fasting

A growing body of research highlights the power of intermittent fasting to help support healthy insulin levels, blood pressure and liver function, as well as enhance cellular-repair processes and reduce inflammation.

The most common method involves fasting for about sixteen hours between dinner and breakfast. This signals your metabolism to burn fat and allows your body to experience a longer-thannormal period of low insulin in the blood, which is a powerful reset.

Take Digital Breaks

Our digital lives creep out of work and into our homes. These devices are designed to tap into the brain’s reward system, triggering the release of tiny hits of dopamine, leaving us simultaneously hyperstimulated and exhausted. Taking digital breaks can boost mental and emotional health, improve sleep and help prevent the physical side effects (such as dry eyes and spinal misalignment from hunching over phones and computers) of constant digital immersion.

The next time you’re out running errands, visiting with friends or getting some fresh air, do yourself a favor and leave your phone behind. It will be a good break for your mind, body and soul.

Practice an Elimination Diet

Eliminating certain foods from your diet can be an effective and informative strategy when you’re not feeling well and suspect that a food sensitivity or intolerance may be the cause. Everyone wants a quick, easy answer from a lab, but the gold standard for detecting a food sensitivity is to eat an easy-todigest basic diet and then progressively add back in various food categories to see if you get a response.

If you discover a sensitivity to a food or ingredient, like gluten, you’ll know enough to temporarily avoid it to relieve your symptoms. Who knows, a few months without it may be all you need to resolve your issues.

Get a Good Night’s Rest

It’s amazing how good we can feel after a good night’s rest. People sleep best when they go to bed and rise at or around the same time each day. Insufficient sleep has been linked to chronic conditions, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. One study found that people who averaged less than seven hours of sleep a night were about three times more likely to develop cold symptoms than those who slept at least eight hours.

Learn to Manage Stress

These days, stress is a part of our everyday lives. Excess stress is harmful to our health. Sometimes the demands placed on us (such as work, school or relationships) exceed our ability to cope. An extreme amount of stress can result in a variety of health consequences and take a severe emotional toll. You will be at your best if you can find balance in both your personal and professional life.

Make Connections

The best things in life – love, relationships, leisure, adventure – may not have a price tag, but the things that nurture them often do. Whether it’s a family vacation or dinner out with friends, investing time and money in activities that support relationships and our own sense of enjoyment is rarely a bad idea.

Relationships are key to better health, and experiences inspire greater satisfaction than material things. Just know that you’re making a positive investment to improve your health.

In Conclusion:

Good health is the greatest blessing of life. Act. Don’t sit there waiting. Being an active participant in your health maximizes your chances of living a long, healthy and productive life.

The true cost of an unhealthy lifestyle, is years taken off your life. Remember, tomorrow is promised to no one. Invest in your health now.

I have been a personal trainer for over eighteen years and I absolutely love what I do. I honestly feel that I have one of the best jobs out there! The most rewarding part of my profession is helping one of my clients succeed at reaching their personal fitness goals. Making a difference in someone’s life makes it all worthwhile. I am currently certified by the National Sports Conditioning Association, Apex Fitness Group, and the International Sports Science Association.