5 Healthy Habits to Supplement Your Chiropractic Care, for November and the Rest of the Year!
Hydrate - Start your day off with 16 ounces of water as the first thing you put into your body. Then, continue that hydration throughout the day. The goal is to drink half your body weight in ounces. For example, If you weigh 190 lbs, you should drink 80 oz. of water which is 10, 8 oz. glasses of water per day.
Get your steps in. We should all be averaging 7,500 - 10,000 steps per day. Walking daily is extremely important for multiple reasons. It gets your body in an upright position that strengthens and awakens joints and muscles in your hips, legs, core, arms, back, neck, organs… basically every muscle in your body has to wake up and work. It gets your blood flowing and your heart pumping. It moves lymphatic fluid so that you can detox the waste products from your blood. If you do it outside, you get vitamin D which is extremely important for all functions in your body and your immune system. It boosts your metabolism and alkalizes your body's pH.
Breathe. Let’s face it! We all need to breathe and we do it unconsciously, however conscious breathing is a way to calm the nervous system and bring life-force to all of your cells. Our breath should be fully filling the lungs and flowing cyclically in and out without hesitations. Those of us that harbor a lot of tension and stress in our muscles, shoulders, and mind, need to bring more life-force energy and oxygen to those tissues. Being conscious of your breath and focusing on breathing for just 3 minutes a day can make a positive influence on the rest of your unconscious breathing throughout the day and night.
Minimize sugar, which includes synthetic sugar. Sugar is necessary for the body to function, but adults only need 10 teaspoons of sugar a day, including the sugar that is in foods. The average American adult consumes 20 teaspoons a day, which is an extra 710 empty calories a day. I’m not sure of how many teaspoons the average adult consumes each day during the holidays, but I’m sure it’s much higher, putting our bodies into insulin overdrive.
Get your sleep. Sticking to a sleep routine and getting the same amount of sleep each night, allows your body to re-nourish and recharge itself. Just like a battery that needs to be charged, so do you. If you struggle to fall asleep and/or sleep through the night, find a nightly routine with the intention of relaxation and restful sleep. This routine should include dimming lighting in your home a couple of hours before bedtime, not starring at any type of screen, and possibly spending a few minutes of conscious breathing.
If this seems like a lot of steps to incorporate in your daily routine all at once, then focus on 1 for one or two weeks, and add another the next week [or something along those lines]. We all have to start somewhere. The idea is to start these healthy habits now, instead of waiting until the new year, to make resolutions to change them then.