Live Longer and Prosper with 7 Habit-Changing Steps
There are many different ways to improve your outlook for the future. Even something as simple as regulating your body temperature for a longer life could add many extra years to your lifespan. Eating healthier, exercising regularly, and mindful practices are commonly-known ways to practice a healthy lifestyle. But did you know that just a simple change in some of your everyday habits are the key to living a longer life?
First cut out all of those bad self-destructive behaviors and take on new healthy habits. Adopt new habits to live longer. These different ways to a longer life will get you fired up to practice healthy living and destroy all preconceptions that happiness and living a long life can be bought.
Ways to Live Longer Will Make You Motivated to Change Your Habits and Live a Well-Balanced Lifestyle
We all want to live longer, yet many don't know the steps to take to ensure living a full life. Make these simple lifestyle changes for less health problems and more happy years.
1. Pay Attention to Food Labels
This is seriously important. There is nothing worse for your overall health than not knowing what exactly you are putting into your body. You should be looking for the most fresh, nutrient-dense natural foods available to you. With all of the junk being sold at fast food chains, restaurants, and even supermarkets; you can't just assume that what you're buying is authentic.
Before you buy next time, check the labels and make sure you understand the ingredients in the food. If you don't, do some research to find out what it is and what it does for your body. You should look to limit artificial preservatives and genetically modified foods as much as possible to live longer and healthier.
Vote with your money
I In fact, if more people started taking charge of their lives and paid attention to details like the ingredients of the food they are eating, it would actually be helping everyone else in the process. We are always voting with our money. The things we don't buy because they are obviously not healthy are then discontinued. Then those food companies that make inferior products are then run out of business. Everyone's health would then benefit as a result.
2. Make Things Easier on Yourself
Find ways to reduce everyday hassles by taking shortcuts, being proactive, and acting upon your desires. Stuck behind a slow truck in your lane and it's driving you nuts? Don't take the emotional abuse. Speed up and pass him, and don't feel bad about it for a second. Is your friend pressuring you to do something you don't want to do? Put your foot down and give her an outright and apologetic "no".
Make yourself the priority, always. Sidestep the mental stress by never allowing yourself to be someone's doormat.
Don't hassle around
In addition, avoid hassle whenever possible. I happen to think that formalities and small talk is a hassle, but that's just my style. I opt out of the conversational pleasantries whenever possible. I also don't like to carry umbrellas around everywhere, because I forget them. So I just don't use them and get wet in the rain. Some conveniences in life are actually more of a hassle than they seem to be. Just remember to avoid whatever hassles you, and you will live a little more freely.
Don't Be Their Punching Bag
The health consequences of putting up with mental torture are immense. If you hold negative feelings inside and let the world use you as your doormat, you will live an unhappy life. Those small stressors build up and you become bitter and resentful. Learn to stand up for yourself and avoid the small hassles that other people wish they could change yet put up with anyways.
Speak your mind and be comfortable being you
Sometimes it's not the things we say but the things we don't say that ruminate in our minds and end up causing us stress. This is why you need to speak your mind and be comfortable in your own skin. Try out some of these other random simple tricks and soon you will stop sabotaging yourself and instead enjoy life the way it was meant to be lived.
3. Try New Things
Vary your lifestyle up a bit. Try new foods, herbs, and spices. There are many supplements out there with amazing health benefits. The percentage of humans who are deficient in essential nutrients are astounding. Look into it more and you will find out there are easy and cost-efficient ways to have a load of natural energy during the day. There are many life hacks to literally turn yourself into a non-stop superhuman.
Variety is the Spice of Life
Get yourself out of the habit of thinking there's only one way to do things. The drawback to this one-dimensional thinking has adverse effects on your mental and physical health. You should become more aware of the natural alternatives to modern diets and medicine. Bring variety into your life in order to live longer and take every benefit while living.
4. Celebrate More
If nobody celebrates and pats you on the back very often, you must take matters into your own hands. Treat yourself to expensive gifts and special treatment once in a while. We all deserve to celebrate our successes. The consequences of not doing so are immense. When we go a long time without vacations and self-rewards, we lose motivation to seek that reward-earning behavior. We always need hope for a better future to keep us at our best.
5. When in doubt, follow your instincts
Our first instinct never lies. No matter what you hear from other people to do in certain situations, only your gut can truly guide you out of sticky situations. You must learn to trust yourself in times of distress, because nobody knows you better than you.
Since everybody's life experiences are different, you should take opinions for a grain of salt and collect that salt in an hourglass. When the time comes to act quickly, go with your first instinct. Even if it was the wrong decision, that's how you learn. It's a better way to learn than the information you read and hear about.
Make all the decisions you ever make yours
If you don't follow your gut, then what left do you have to follow? You have other people to follow. And that's not even like living your own life. Make your own decisions. Regardless of how difficult they may be. Your life will turn out the way you want it to, rather than what other people want it to.
6. Eat Less
Seriously. Why do we eat so much? We should be eating to survive, that's the point of food. Your meals should be scheduled around your life instead of certain intervals of the day.
Furthermore, we should be drinking more as a healthy way of living. Drink more, eat less. Drink more water, more tea, more soups, and you will be less hungry for solid food. You notice that you lose weight after being sick and being on an all-liquid diet? It's not rocket science. Clear liquids purge your body of toxins and promote growth of healthy bacteria in your gut. Which in turn helps you lose a lot of weight.
Sometimes I eat once a day, sometimes four or five. Fasting an entire 24 hours will not kill you. Training your stomach to have some will-power will do wonders for your long-term health. And it makes eating a reward. You will be less picky as a result, and the food will actually taste better if you show self-restraint in your diet. Fasting is not only for health benefits and looking good; it's also showing that your strength to refrain from eating too much. We all eat more than we should. Having some will power is the way we were meant to live. When you enjoy yourself; really splurge and enjoy yourself. Live more and all that time you spent fasting will make that reward taste even sweeter.
7. Touch and Be Touched More
From birth, we are genetically disposed to require the human touch to survive. In order to live longer and happier lives, we must be comfortable with the closeness of others. Utilizing touching is a necessary tool to create and keep close bonds. The same contact we yearn for from others, we also must learn to give back. Intimate relationships, close friendships, and family are a very necessary way to satisfy our need for touch.
In some cultures, people who don't know each other still maintain contact through touching. The value of touch is universally recognized except in many developed countries, which is disappointing and surprising. Nothing is as emotionally stimulating as the closeness of another human. Don't conceal your desire for touching, as it's what connects us as living organisms.
Stay connected and have a support group
We humans are all connected with each other whether we like it or not. We need each other in order to survive. We don't fare well when we isolate ourselves for long periods of time; our health starts to decline. It's in our best interests to stay connected and have a support group in times of hardship. It's also in our best interest to have people close enough to where we can touch without feeling awkward. Our body craves physical contact as much as possible. When we stray away from our body's natural instincts, we have no chance for living longer.
