Getting Healthy In Minutes
Everyone is overscheduled, but there’s still time for exercise
It’s far easier to get started when things are broken up into smaller intervals.
In fact, most people falter when it comes to getting healthy because they attempt dramatic lifestyle overhauls, with overly restrictive diets, difficult workout regimens and an overly ambitious weightloss objectives.
Better to set achievable goals that you can build upon. Start with a series of individual exercises that you can do in essentially 10 minutes. Some are as simply as walking or meditating. Others are more in the traditional mode of gym workouts – but on a much narrower scale.
Start small and slowly build your way to strength, health and wellness. You’re far more apt to stick with this kind of gradual plan, since you’ll be working your way up slowly – while avoiding round after round of potential disappointment when you fall short of initially unreachable targets.
MOVING AROUND
They say sitting is the new smoking, in the sense that so many people do it in our modern world – despite a growing body of evidence about the health impacts. Remaining so sedentary can caught deterioration of musculature, while leading to other health problems relating to your heart. Set a timer for every 30 minutes or so, and take a walk around – even if it’s just to get a drink of water.
BETTER SNACKING
Instead of salty chips or sugary candy bars, considering more regularly eating nuts.
The New England Journal of Medicine reports that people who regularly do so are significantly less likely to deal with a variety of potentially life-threatening issues – including cancer, heart and respiratory disease, among other maladies.
QUIET TIME
Meditating has been linked to an impressive range of benefits for both the body and the mind. Take a moment to bring mindfulness to your day. If you’re unsure how to find this centered place, or feel awkward when getting started, ask friends or download an app for guidance. This is another example of how incremental activity can make a huge impact.
INTERVAL TRAINING
We often envision a trip to the gym as requiring hours of commitment. High-intensity interval training follows a different model, where there are very short rounds of exercise. So, 40 seconds of jogging in place and then 20 seconds of rest, and so on. Rotate to jumping jacks, keeping it all within a 10-minute window.