Want to be healthier and happier by this time next year? It turns out, it’s not that hard to do if you make small, sustainable adjustments to your lifestyle over the course of a year. These tiny tweaks can have a big impact and won’t leave you feeling overwhelmed.
- Take the stairs – Choose to skip the elevator and walk the stairs for the next year and you’ll not only be getting your heart rate up, your blood flowing and metabolism kicked into gear, you’ll also help combat all the sitting we do all the time.
- Rethink your snack choices – When you need to nosh between meals, your go-to may be cookies or chips, but going for protein-packed, nutrient-rich munchies is so much better for you. Stock up on nuts, yogurt and berries, veggies and hummus and fruit with nut butter to help get in all of your food groups, bring your energy level up and give your body what it really needs.
- Call one old friend a month – Then, by this time next year, you’ll have reached out to 12 people and rekindled or strengthened a dozen friendships. Research has shown that people with strong social bonds are 50% more likely to outlive those who don’t, so start connecting.
- Go to bed one minute earlier every night – Think about it, a minute every night will earn you an extra hour of sleep in just two months. Of course, you can’t keep adding a minute for a full year or you’ll end up with six extra hours of sleep. But sleep deprivation is linked with a higher risk of obesity, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, heart problems, and more, so make sleep a priority the easy way with one extra minute a night.
- Choose olive oil over butter – This could help reduce your risk of heart disease by 19% in just a year because you’re swapping saturated fat for polyunsaturated fat.
- Stand up and move every 20 minutes – Research has shown that sitting for prolonged periods can actually shorten your life. Being active and going to the gym is good, but the key is to find ways to stand and move more during the day and some experts advise getting up from your chair at least every half hour.
Source: Real Simple