Improving your lifestyle to get healthier and manage weight better requires good intentions.
You also need to know the strategies to follow that will give you the most bang for your buck in your quest for better health.
After treating thousands of patients over my 4-decade career, I’ve learned some common pitfalls to a healthier life.
I highlight 3 here along with strategies for overcoming them:
1-You Hate to Exercise
Modern life doesn’t make it easy to be a physically active person.
If you are also someone who hates to exercise, this can become even more of a challenge.
With the right strategies though, you can build physical activity into your daily routine without having to join a health club or become a runner.
2-You Don’t Sleep Well
Low energy and fatigue are common complaints of people who don’t sleep well.
Poor sleep can sap your energy the next day, making it harder to follow self-care practices like choosing healthy foods or exercising.
New research also points to the connection between poor sleep, stress eating and weight gain as well as worsened chronic health problems like heart disease and diabetes.
Better sleep can translate into better health with these tips.
3-You Follow Strict Diet Rules
Are you someone who has strict diet rules you tell yourself you must follow?
Do you feel guilty when you don’t follow the rules?
Though your intentions may be good here, we know that being strict in your approach to better health is not a recipe for long-term success.
Studies show that being flexible in your approach to eating and losing weight can actually help you eat better and achieve a healthier body weight.
If you’re ready to learn ways being flexible can nudge better health, read more here.
Yes, improving your lifestyle does take time, perseverance and patience.
But it also needs to be strategic, based on your personal life challenges.
This is what my book, Six Factors to Fit: Weight Loss that Works for You is all about.
Please check it out here if you want to learn more.
RK
Robert Kushner, MD
