[Article updated on 19/09/2023]
Here is a definition of healthy living:
Before reading on
I’m not an expert in this field, but I am passionate about nutrition and health.
The articles you’ll find on my site are the result of in-depth research that I’d like to share with you. However, I would like to stress that I am not a health professional and that my advice should in no way replace that of a qualified physician. I’m here to guide you, but it’s important that you consult a professional for specific questions or medical concerns. Your well-being is important. So be sure to consult the appropriate experts and take the best possible care of yourself.
“ A healthy lifestyle is the set of measures intended to preserve and promote health. It mainly concerns lifestyle choices. These choices are adopted because of their positive impacts on its own well-being physical or moral. Daily life behaviors are strongly influenced by one’s perception of one’s state of health. »
(Wikipedia)
We will understand from this definition that a healthy lifestyle is important. But what do we actually mean by this term? This is what I call “healthy living”.
What to do to have a healthy lifestyle?
To begin, I will necessarily talk about a balanced diet.
And yes, eating a balanced diet allows your body to function properly, to fight effectively against diseases, to live healthier, to secrete the right hormones (satiety hormones, happiness hormones – serotonin – for example).
Eating a balanced diet means eating a variety of seasonal fruits and vegetables, starchy foods, preferably complete or semi-complete, dairy products, proteins but above all not too much salt, few added sugars, few processed or industrial products, ….
Put “the right fuel” in your body so that it functions well.
And if our body is functioning properly, that’s already a very good point for us. But, as with a chair, you obviously need several “legs” for your lifestyle to be balanced and stable.
I give you 10 rules to change your eating behavior:
What about physical activity?
Regular physical activity is indeed one of the important pillars of having a healthy lifestyle.
Do a sport that you enjoy or move as much as possible: consider using your bike or your legs instead of the car, take the stairs rather than the elevator, go for a walk in the forest, etc.
The goal is for your body to move with pleasure, especially so that it lasts over time!
And sleep?
Sleep is also one of the essential pillars of hygiene.
If sleep is not of good quality, you will feel fatigue, irritability, hunger (which is emotional hunger),… in short, quality sleep considerably improves your day.
And if you have trouble falling asleep or if you wake up regularly during the night, you need to try to understand why and set up a ritual to start: take a good bath, read a good book, drink a good herbal tea. …but absolutely avoid screens and anything that could create stress (a stressful telephone conversation just before going to bed, for example).
If you would like to view other of my articles:
What else can you do to have a healthy lifestyle?
Well, it may seem logical and simple, but learn or re-learn to take care of yourself, to take care of yourself, to live in the present moment, to savor each moment.
Often, between work, home, children,…we forget ourselves and yet WE are one of the pillars of our healthy lifestyle.
Take the time to make a moment your own even if you think you don’t have the time (cleaning will wait!).
Take a good shower, sing, relax! And you will see your energy increase tenfold.
Practice mindfulness and/or cardiac coherence for 5 minutes, 3 times a day (breathing technique which greatly reduces stress in the body).
Finally, what is 15 minutes in a day? It’s so little but so essential!
Is healthy living that simple?
Ultimately, it’s quite simple to have a healthy lifestyle, but you have to give yourself the means and want to change your way of doing things sustainably.
I remind you that you must:
- Eat a balanced diet, which means taking the time to cook and shop accordingly.
- Have regular physical activity, which means forgetting the computer, the phone or the car for a while in favor of a walk in the fresh air.
- Improve your quality of sleep, which means managing to eliminate all the tensions of the day to get a good night’s rest.
- Self-care, which means taking time for ourselves.
In my opinion, it is important that these 4 pillars are present in equivalent quantities to have a healthy lifestyle that will allow you to feel good, in good health and to flourish.
Be kind to yourself, this is also very important, we must not put pressure on ourselves.
For example, if this week you have not had any physical activity or if you have eaten haphazardly, nothing is lost, you will do better the following week, the whole point is to take steps forward, little by little, like a baby does when learning to walk….You wouldn’t blame him for falling, would you?
To summarize my opinion
- Eat balanced.
- Practice regular physical activity.
- Sleep properly.
- Think about yourself.