Achieving your health goals can seem stressful at times… Honestly, it can feel like you’re juggling multiple balls. The balls happen to be on fire, and you’ve just realized you don’t know how to juggle. Fortunately, the tips below can help you achieve your fitness goals in a sustainable and realistic manner.
Tip 1: Get Adequate Sleep
Not only can lack of sleep leave you cranky, it can cause major health issues. Sleep is vital for physical, mental, and emotional health. Not getting adequate amounts of sleep has been linked to obesity and depression. The National Sleep Foundation recommends teens to sleep 8 to 10 hours per night, 7 to 9 hours for adults, and 7 to 8 hours for elders.
Tip 2: Drink Water
Water is a major source of life. Nearly 70% of the human body is composed of water. Your organs, tissues, and cells need water to survive. Proper hydration is essential to reach your health goals, especially if you exercise often or are older in age. Dehydration can manifest itself as dry skin, frizzy hair, and lethargy. Light colored urine indicates a healthy amount of hydration. You should utilize the 8 by 8 rule – consume 8 ounces of water 8 times per day.
Tip 3: Get a Gym Buddy
You may be excited to start your fitness routine and reach your health goals, but a sense of dread creeps up as you begin to tie your shoes to go to the gym. Finding a gym buddy who has similar goals as you can make a positive impact on your motivation levels. You can hold each other accountable, cheer each other on, and celebrate small victories as they come. There is an African proverb that states, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Reach out to friends, family, and even people you meet at the gym to strike up the potential for a blossoming gym buddy relationship.
Tip 4: Eat a Balanced Diet
Not feeding yourself the proper number of calories throughout the day is not healthy for your mental state or metabolism. Ignore fad diets that promise staggering results in a very short time frame. You can’t achieve your goals in just a few weeks or months. Health is a journey not a destination, anything worthwhile takes time. Fad and low-calorie diets may help you lose a few pounds, but they are not sustainable enough to incorporate into your lifestyle and many individuals often find themselves gaining the weight back after completing the diet. Your diet should include fats, carbs, proteins, vitamins, and minerals. Be weary of diets that cut out entire food groups or are low in calories. Low-calorie diets can sabotage your health goals in the long run by not meeting your body’s nutrient needs.
Tip 5: Set Achievable Goals
The last thing you want to do is set the bar too high for yourself. Focus on creating and accomplishing small steps that will take you to your end goal. It’s important to celebrate the small wins. Goals ranging from completing 20 push-ups to achieving a single pull-up are all valid. Do not compare yourself to someone who is at a different point in their fitness journey. Take it a step at a time and celebrate small wins as they come!
