With personal finance we talk a lot about paying yourself first. Paying yourself goes farther than just finances. Too many of us concentrate solely on the money management side of things, like budgeting, creating a frugal lifestyle, debt elimination, and saving/investing our cash for our future. But what about our future health? Our health is just as important in any of our future plans.
Our personal finance goals must include investing in our health
Poor health can not only rob us of joy on our lives, it can cost us financially too. This investment is much easier to commit to doing too. It just takes a mindset change to prioritize a healthy lifestyle. Best of all, it doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to be healthier either. Here are a few tips to get started with. Look at your daily activity and see if any of these could become part of your healthy lifestyle changes.
Our Health and Fitness –
Sometimes little changes can bring big benefits. Here are some things to consider –
Forget the elevator/lift, take the stairs.
You not only burn a few calories but there are mental benefits to exercise. Not to mention that if you only have one or two flights to go, it is usually faster than waiting for and talking the elevator.
Park a little farther from the office and walk.
Make walking a part of your day even when on the job. Instead of a heavy lunch, choose a light lunch and hit the bricks. Walk and explore. You not only get some exercise but also stimulate your mind.
Join a gym.
Now this will come with some cost so be sure to get the right plan at the right place. Some gyms concentrate on hard-core workouts where others are more laid back for the office crowd. If you don’t feel comfortable there don’t join. You have to want to go to develop the sustained good exercise habits.
Create your own gym.
Having some unused space in your home can be the perfect spot for your personal exercise room. You don’t have to spend a fortune on equipment either. Many unused equipment ends up for sell on the internet. Stationary bikes, Total Gym, Bowflex, a big percentage of the stuff you see advertised gets bought and then later abandoned. Even just a few hand weights can go far.
Start running, hiking and biking.
A good pair of running shoes, a decent bicycle, and a desire to get outside and you have yourself not only good exercise but fun exercise.
Watch what you eat.
Make daily decisions that lean toward better health. It doesn’t always have to be Kale salads. Start small and work your way to healthier eating. Skip the hamburger, buy the turkey sandwich. Skip the fries and get a healthier alternate.
Get a good night’s sleep.
Sometimes we just can’t get to bed when we should. Not to mention those who hit the sack at a reasonable hour but can’t sleep or sleep poorly. Getting the proper amount of sleep has been medically proven essential for good health. Get on a good sleep schedule where you get the required hours of sleep. If unable to sleep, seek a doctor’s assistance. Many people suffer from sleep apnea and even central apnea and don’t know it. They wake completely tired every morning due to not getting full sleep. Take the necessary steps to get healthy sleep in your life.
Mental Health
Take care of your mind. De-stress your lifestyle and shed as much of your negative influences. Meditation is a good stress reliever and millions of people swear by it. Even exercise works to help us deal with stress in our life.
Medications and Checkups
We should keep current with all of our checkups for medical, dental, and eyes. When we are young and healthy we sometimes think we can skip seeing the Dr or dentist to save money. Big Mistake! Staying healthy means having good health habits early and sticking to them.