Written by Menswear Style in Health & Fitness on the 25th April 2018

Far too many people make the mistake of only starting to look after their health when something goes wrong with it, become unwell or are diagnosed with a chronic health condition. However, this shouldn’t be the case - we should all look after our health throughout our lives. After all, they say that health is the best wealth, and they’re right - if you haven’t got your health, what have you got? If you’re someone who doesn’t take their health all that seriously, then perhaps now could be a good time to start changing that. If you want to lead a long, healthy and happy life, it’s important that you take steps to take care of yourself and make your health a priority. Wondering how you can do that? Below are some tips and ideas for simple changes that you can make to lead a healthier life.

Swap to whole food alternatives 

For the most part, there’s a common misconception that white foods, such as white pasta, rice, and bread taste better than their whole food alternatives made with whole grains; when actually that isn’t the case. Yes, they taste different, but not overly different, and then there’s the fact that eating whole foods rather than processed alternatives is much better for your body, which is why it’s so important that you are willing to make these changes. If you want to keep your body healthy and help prevent diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and high cholesterol, it’s important that you are mindful about what you are putting into your body.

Avoid excessive drinking 

While it’s all well and good going out for a pint at the weekend with your buddies, what you don’t want to do is get into a habit of excessive drinking. Because this can create an unhealthy routine of drinking large amounts on the weekend, on a regular basis. The issue with drinking too much alcohol is that not only can doing so have an impact on your short-term health, but also on your long-term health. So it’s important that you are mindful of that, and realise that just because you’re not seeing too many health impacts now, that doesn’t mean in the future you won’t do. 

Stop smoking 

Do you smoke? If you’re a smoker, it’s important that you understand how dangerous this habit is for your health, both now and in the future. If you want to ensure that your body remains as healthy as possible, it’s vital that you think very carefully about the impact that smoking is having on your body, and ways that you can reduce how much you are smoking or quit altogether. Perhaps you could consider trying vaping - you can learn more about this via ecigwizard.com, where there’s plenty of information regarding vaping. While it’s probably better to stop smoking altogether, vaping offers a much healthier alternative to smoking, which is why it’s worthwhile considering making the change.

Exercise more 

Are you exercising enough? If you’re not doing 45 minutes of exercise four to five times a week, you most probably aren’t exercising enough. If you want to ensure that you stay healthy and your body remains in shape, it’s important that you take the time to do more exercise. Not a big fan of working out? Then it’s important that you find a way to make exercise more enjoyable for you. This could mean joining a sports team, taking up a sport like rock climbing, or choosing to take up a new hobby, such as cycling. It doesn’t matter how you exercise, just as long as you make time to do so. 

Reduce your stress levels  

When it comes to staying healthy, many people fail to think about their mental health. However, if you want to put your health first, it’s vital that you take steps to look after your mental health, and one of the best ways to do that is to reduce your stress levels. When you are stressed out, you are more prone to mental health problems, which is why it’s so important that you understand what steps you need to take to reduce the levels of stress that you are under. Whether this is by spending time meditating on a daily basis - a practice that can work wonders - or you find another hobby that works for you, it doesn’t matter just as long as you are able to manage your levels of stress effectively.

We discuss Whole food alternatives, Avoiding excessive drinking, Stoping smoking, Exercising more and Reducing stress levels in this guide on How to Lead a Healthier Life in 2018.