15 Small Health Habits That Offer You A Lot Of Big Benefits

Sometimes we think that having better health is something that we don’t have time for because it is going to make such a big change in our lives.  While that is sometimes true, there are many small health habits that you can add into your life that will give you big rewards.  If it seems overwhelming when you think about adding all of these, try to add one new one every week or two until you find yourself living a much healthier lifestyle thanks to these small health habits.

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1. Drink More Water

Water is a basic need of our body and one that we are often neglectful to meet.  Very few of us drink the amount of water that we need each day.  When we aren’t drinking the adequate amount water, we are not giving our body what it needs to function properly.  Make it your daily goal to drink no less than eight glasses of water a day and benefit from applying this small health habit.  An easy way to do this is to keep a bottle of water close at hand.

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2. Wash Your Hands Often

Washing your hands is the number one way to prevent from getting sick and an important small health habit to add to your life.  Our hands touch thousands of different surfaces each day and then we usually touch our face and transfer those germs if we are not careful to take time to wash our hands.  Be careful to wash your hands often and when you are not near soap and water, use a hand sanitizer until you can properly wash them.

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3. Take A Daily Multivitamin

A daily multivitamin can fill in any gaps in your diet that you may be lacking and is a small health habit that doesn’t take long at all to complete each day.  Very few people eat perfectly every day and taking a multivitamin can help to give you the nutritional vitamins and minerals you aren’t getting from your diet.  Or course you should always talk to your doctor before you make any changes in the medications that you take.

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4. Keep Your Doctor Appointments

It is important to keep your regular doctor appointments.  Many of us are guilty of going to the doctor only when we are sick but that is a bad idea.  Our doctor needs to see us regularly so they can gauge how we are doing when we are well.  They also need an appointment time when they can focus solely on routine examinations and tests.  Keep your doctor appointments to have the best health.

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5. Get Enough Sleep

So many of us are guilty of burning the candle at both ends so that we can fit more into our already busy days.  We live in such a busy and fast paced world that we feel like we have to fit everything we possibly can into a day.  Aim to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep a night.  This small health habit will really pay off as you will see when you feel better than ever before.  You can read this informative article about how much sleep you really need over at Health.com for more information.

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6. Park Far Away

When it comes to fitness, it turns out that every little bit adds up.  The more you move, the more exercise you are getting.  This means that when you choose to park in a spot farther away from a store’s entrance, you are giving your body a few extra steps and a little bit of extra exercise.  Parking farther away from the store entrance gives you the opportunity to add in another small health habit.  Want to know how many steps you are taking a day?  Pick up a pedometer to track them.

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7. Stop Eating Late At Night

Eating late at night is something that most of us do in this country.  We come in from a long day’s work, have dinner and take care of chores and children then we plop down on the couch with something tasty.  This is a bad mistake.  Those extra calories you consume late at night can really add up.  If you must have a night time snack, aim for something low cal such as fruit or yogurt.  Replacing junk food with healthy choices makes this small health habit easy to implement.

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8. Get Some Exercise

Most of us, myself included, do not really enjoy exercise.  But I have learned that I feel better when I exercise regularly.  I have more energy and I have less weight to carry around with me.  The trick to being devoted to your exercise routine is to find one you can make work for you.  Once you begin exercising regularly, this small health habit is one that is easy to stick to because it is part of your

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9. Wear Sunscreen

Wearing sunscreen is a small health habit that pays off big time.  With skin cancer on the rise and the sun’s rays stronger than ever, it makes sense to take the time to apply sunscreen.  Also, you shouldn’t just save sunscreen for when you are at the beach but wear it daily.  Make applying it part of your daily routine so that your skin is as healthy as possible.

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10. Don’t Skip Breakfast

Skipping breakfast isn’t good for your body.  It deprives your body of the fuel it needs to do what it needs to do.  In addition, when you skip breakfast, you are usually ravenous by lunch time and tend to overeat or choose the wrong foods to eat.  Add this small health habit in and choose to eat a good healthy breakfast each morning.  Even having a piece of whole wheat toast is better than nothing.

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11. Clean House

Having a clean home helps to keep germs down and keep dust from building up and triggering allergies, as well.  Although few of us have time to clean our homes the way we would like to, we can make this small health habit stick by having a weekly schedule.  Be sure to vacuum and mop weekly as well as taking time to sanitize the germ hot spots on a daily basis.  This will help you and your family to have better health.

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12. Nurture Your Friendships

This is a fun small health habit to add to your life.  How many of us get all the time we want to spend with our girlfriends?  Very few of us do.  Take time to spend with your friends and add a small health habit at the same time.  Match up your schedules and see where you can find a gap to get together.  Even just catching each other for a quick morning coffee is better than nothing.

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13. Eat A Salad

How many of us can honestly say that we get all the veggies in that we need every day?  I know I can’t.  Eating a salad in place of a burger or pizza once in a while is a small health habit that is actually quite flavorful.  Make it your goal to add as many different colors as you can to your plate.  The more variety in the color of your veggies, the more vitamins and minerals you are getting.

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14. Take Time For Things You Enjoy

Stress builds in us when we feel like we are constantly weighed down and overwhelmed.  It is good to take time for things that you enjoy.  Taking time for things you enjoy allows you to relax and focus on fun instead of all of the responsibilities that you have weighing you down.  The best way to get this relaxation time is to schedule it in just like you would a dental appointment.  Writing it on your calendar means it is more likely to happen.

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15. Watch Less TV

There is nothing wrong with watching something you enjoy on television.  The problem comes when you sit for hours on hours and watch tv.  This is bad for your health because it causes you to be sedentary.  When you do watch tv, try to do something that keeps you active like riding an exercise bike or doing some stretches to keep you limber.  Before you know it, this small health habit will come without you even thinking of it.

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