We have come a long way from the time when people used to die of common illnesses. But despite the advancement in medicine, a vast number of incurable diseases exist today. If you add the pollution from vehicles and the industrial waste full of harmful chemicals, the environment has become quite dangerous for us. While we should take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of our environment, we should also take care of our health to keep ourselves safe from all kinds of harmful things. Many people workout and diet to get in shape but once they achieve their goal, they go back to their old routine. As a result, their body goes back to the old form, and this is an unhealthy routine. Staying in shape does not only mean maintaining your curves but also taking care of your health and fitness. To put it simply, if you follow a healthy lifestyle, you will stay in shape.
Here are five habits that can help you stay in shape:
1. Forget about Dieting:
If you start following a diet to get in shape, you will eventually get tired of it and give it up. Even if you stop following the diet after getting in shape, you will realize that the benefits of the diet were only temporary. People who manage to stay in shape all the time don’t do it by sticking to a specific diet. Some diets may get you in shape, but you will be missing out on essential nutrients and vitamins, and that’s why you should only stick to a balanced, healthy diet. You may look fit by following a diet, but by eating right, you will feel fit too. A healthy eating routine will provide your body with all the necessary strength it needs.
The easiest way to follow a healthy eating routine is by cooking at home more often than eating out. Finding healthy alternatives will be hard if you eat out frequently. But eating healthy doesn’t mean that you can’t have a cheat meal or day once in a while. In fact, it is good to treat yourself to some unhealthy food once in a while, so you don’t end up losing control and consuming too much of it.
2. Stay Active all the Time:
You may have a good workout routine in the gym, but your motivation to stay fit shouldn’t disappear as soon as you step out of the gym. People who stay fit and in shape manage to do so by adapting an active lifestyle. These days, we spend most of our times sitting behind a desk or on our couch. Sitting for long periods is not good for your health, and it can also get in the way of your goal to stay in shape. Although sitting cannot be avoided due to the modern office life, the total time of sitting can be reduced with some effort. Learn to move more and sit less. Whenever you get a break from work, or you finish writing a report, get up from your seat and take a walk around the office. When you are home, don’t keep sitting on the couch unnecessarily.
The best way to make a habit of walking is to set a reminder on your phone that you should walk a hundred steps every hour. Once it becomes a part of your routine, it will feel less like a task. Walking a hundred steps an hour hardly takes a few minutes. But it has numerous benefits. You will not only be keeping yourself in shape but also protecting yourself from the dangers of heart diseases.
3. MMA Training:
Working out can get boring for most people. Many dread the typical routine of getting on the treadmill or picking up the weights and following the same thing every day. The workouts in gym offer no real challenge and consequently do not interest people. This is why most people workout not because they want to but because they have to (to get results). Mixed Martial Arts or MMA offer these people an alternative. In MMA training people get to learn new techniques every day and that’s why they find it mentally challenging. MMA provides people with an environment where they interact and train with multiple people. Even if one of the trainees drop out, you can continue training with other partners.
MMA is engaging and interesting to the point that even after you have achieved your fitness goals, you won’t want to give it up. Keeping you in shape is one of the many things that MMA does, but it also makes you strong and trains you for all kinds of physical activities.
4. Get Enough Sleep:
You may think that sleep has nothing to do with staying in shape but you would be wrong. Healthy people follow a good sleeping schedule. Social media and work keep us busy all the time, and we end up sacrificing our sleep to keep up with all the latest news. But to stay fit and healthy, we need seven to eight hours of sleep every night. If you don’t sleep well, you will have a hard time staying active throughout the day and following your workout routine. Because less sleep means your body will not recover from the workout of the last day and consequently you will not be ready to face the next day.
Less sleep makes you cranky and leads you to make poor decisions like binging on junk food. If you get plenty of rest, your body will be able to heal from all the physical and emotional stress, you will follow your workout routine in a better way, and manage to stay in shape.
5. Enjoy Your Healthy Ways:
Whether it is exercising or eating the right food, you must learn to enjoy the healthy living, or you will get tired of it. Create workout playlists, compete with friends, and participate in marathons to make the routine interesting for you. Try out different healthy recipes and make an extra effort on the presentation, so your food looks and tastes good.
If your routine isn’t exciting and enjoyable, you will get tired of it, and it will be impossible to stay in shape. Learning to enjoy your healthy lifestyle will make it easier for you to take care of your fitness and to stay in shape.
Everyone who wants to stay in good shape for a long term, must follow a healthy lifestyle. The five habits mentioned above can help you start living your life in a way that will make sure you don’t ever lose sight of your fitness goals. These habits will not only keep you in shape but also ensure that you stay healthy.
Author Bio:
Zyana Morris is a passionate blogger having more than 3 years’ experience in health, fitness related topics. Currently she is associated with Nuca MMA and in spare time she enjoys reading novels. @ZyanaMorris