Being healthy often seems incredibly complicated.
There are advertisements everywhere and various experts giving conflicting advice.
However… being healthy does not need to be complicated.
People were much healthier in the past, before all the dieting and “health products” took hold of our society.
The rules haven’t changed since then… our genetics are the same and what worked for us back in the day can also work for us now.
To gain optimal health, lose weight and feel better every day, then all you need to do is follow these 5 simple rules.
1. Do Not Put Toxic Things into Your Body
There are so many things in the environment that are downright toxic to our bodies.
Given the addictive nature of some of these things, people often have a real hard time avoiding them.
This includes the usual suspects like cigarettes, alcohol and abusive drugs. If you’ve got a problem with those… then diet and exercise are the least of your worries.
Alcohol is fine in moderation for those who can tolerate it, but tobacco and abusive drugs are bad for everyone.
2. Lift Things and Move Around
It is extremely important for optimal health to use your muscles.
No… it’s NOT just so that you can get a sixpack and a bulging vein on your biceps.
Lifting weights and exercising goes way beyond just looking good.
True… if you exercise, it is pretty much guaranteed that you will improve your appearance and attractiveness to the opposite sex.
But these benefits are just the tip of the iceberg… exercise is also crucial for your body, brain and hormones to function optimally.
3. Sleep Like a Baby
Sleep is very important for overall health and studies show that sleep deprivation correlates with many diseases, including obesity and heart disease.
It is highly recommended to make time for good, quality sleep.
If you can’t seem to sleep properly for some reason, then see a doctor. Sleep disorders like sleep apnea and others are very common and in many cases easily treatable.
Here are a few effective ways to improve sleep:
- Do not drink coffee late in the day.
- Try to go to bed and wake up at similar times each day.
- Sleep in complete darkness, with no artificial lighting.
- Dampen the lights in your home a few hours before bedtime.
4. Avoid Excess Stress
Being healthy is about more than just diet, exercise and sleep.
The way we feel and how we think is also very important… and being stressed all the time is a recipe for disaster.
Excess stress can raise cortisol levels and cause severe harmful effects on metabolism. It can increase junk food cravings, fat in the abdominal area and raise your risk of all sorts of diseases (18, 19, 20).
There is also evidence that stress is a significant contributor to depression, which is a massive health problem today.
In order to reduce stress, try to simplify your life. Do some exercise, practice deep breathing techniques and maybe even meditation.
5. Nourish Your Body With Real Foods
The simplest and most effective way to eat healthy is to just focus on real foods.
Choose unprocessed, whole foods that resemble what they looked like in nature.
It is best to eat a combination of animals and plants… Meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, as well as healthy fats, oils and high-fat dairy products.
If you’re healthy, lean and active, then eating whole, unrefined carbs is absolutely fine. This includes potatoes, sweet potatoes, legumes and non-gluten grains like oats and rice.
You Need to Stick With it For Life
It’s important to keep in mind that the “dieting” mindset is a bad idea, because it almost never works in the long term.
For this reason, it is critical to aim for a lifestyle change.
Being healthy is a marathon, not a race.
It takes time… and you need to stick with it for life.
H/T: authoritynutrition