You already know that two big ways to improve your health are eating right and staying active. But there\u2019s a whole bunch of little stuff you can do each day to boost your overall wellness. Give these five small (but powerful) healthy tricks a try.<\/p>\n
1. Combine your carbs and protein. <\/b><\/p>\n
Sure, a banana\u2019s good for you, but it\u2019s even better if you combine it with peanut butter. You\u2019ll hold off cravings by taking in some protein with your carbs, says Nancy Clark, a Boston-based registered dietitian and the author of Nancy Clark\u2019s Sports Nutrition Guidebook<\/i>. \u201cYour meal will be more satisfying, you won\u2019t be getting hungry, and it can help curb sweet cravings down the line,\u201d she says. Other power combos: crackers with almond butter or hummus, and oatmeal with nuts.<\/p>\n
2. Catch a few more z\u2019s. <\/b><\/p>\n
Erica Sara Reese, a jewelry designer in Macungue, Pennsylvania, assumed she didn\u2019t need that much sleep and was often up past midnight. But after she got married, when her husband wanted to clock out at 9 p.m., she followed suit. \u201cI\u2019m not as cranky. I can also run my business more efficiently, making wiser decisions because I can think more clearly,\u201d she says. Just one extra hour of sleep makes a health difference too. One study found that an hour more of sleep a night can not only help you be more active, it can even help lower your risk of cancer and diabetes.<\/p>\n
3.<\/b> Stand up. <\/b><\/p>\n
Prolonged periods of inactivity (like sitting at your desk) have been linked to greater risk of heart disease and diabetes. But combating that is easy: Stand up. OK, so maybe you can\u2019t stand the whole day, but try getting out of your chair as much as you can\u2014even if it\u2019s for a minute or two each hour. If you have a desk-bound job, try standing while you\u2019re on the phone or make of habit of getting up to refill your water bottle throughout the day.<\/p>\n
4. Stretch it out. <\/b><\/p>\n
A period of light stretching, say 5 to 10 minutes, before you go to bed and right when you wake up can help lull you to sleep and get you ready for the day ahead, says Jacque Ratliff, an exercise physiologist at the American Council on Exercise. A stretch like the spinal twist can be done in bed. Lie on your back, bring your right knee to your chest, and cross it over to the left side of your body. Turn your head to the right and extend your right arm in a T-shape to your body (with your palm facing the bed), then rest your left hand on your right leg. Hold for 30 seconds, then repeat on the opposite side. You can also try morning and evening meditation, which Ratliff says helps get you ready to start your day and relieves stress before bed. If you\u2019re new to meditation, start small, with just three to five minutes a day. Focus on your breathing, taking slow, deep breaths. If your mind drifts, that\u2019s OK. Simply refocus.<\/p>\n
5. Soak up a little sun. <\/b><\/p>\n
Getting a few minutes of sun exposure a day can give your body the dose of vitamin D it needs (about 1,000 IUs) to keep bones healthy. That means heading outside without sunscreen for a quick walk around the neighborhood or an outdoor lunch break. (The amount of time you\u2019ll need to shun sunscreen to produce vitamin D depends on your skin coloring and where you live, but a good rule of thumb is about 10 minutes. For obvious reasons you\u2019ll also need to bare as much skin as possible\u2014think short sleeves, shorts, and no hat.) Some research has even shown that vitamin D may help protect against cancer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
You already know that two big ways to improve your health are eating right and staying active. But there\u2019s a whole bunch of little stuff you can do each day to boost your overall wellness. Give these five small (but powerful) healthy tricks a try. 1. Combine your carbs and protein. Sure, a banana\u2019s good […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[168],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-balance"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n