These 5 Simple Strategies Will Get You Healthier, Faster – Written by Jennifer McGregor

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Health is something you must work at daily, which can make it very intimidating. However, these stress-free strategies can easily integrate into your lifestyle without much fuss. Here’s how to get healthier from head to toe — with minimal effort.

Keep Tabs on Your Healthcare Coverage

Staying healthy isn’t always easy, especially if you have a chronic illness you’re trying to manage. Ensuring your health coverage stays current — and covers all your needs — should be a priority. Make sure you’re aware of the enrollment period so you can prepare to switch up your policy, if needed, and get more out of it. For example, you can swap original Medicare for a Medicare Advantage plan, which includes access to wellness programs that make it easier to incorporate healthy changes into your life. Plans also expand coverage for prescriptions, dental, vision, and hearing help if you need it.

Add Short Workouts for Maximum Results

Exercise is good for all bodies, but most people don’t have the time or inclination to hit the gym. Fortunately, you don’t need complicated equipment to achieve better health.

Studies show that fitting in about two and a half hours of moderate activity each week is plenty for staving off illness and disease. Of course, you don’t have to sprint to glean the health benefits. Consumer Reports highlights studies that correlate stair climbing a few times per week and exercising for 30 minutes per day with enhanced health. Also, exercises using your body weight can be just as effective as lifting weights or using gym equipment. Getting active for a short duration each day is ideal and doable, no matter how busy your schedule is.

If you’d prefer to take your workouts to the next level, you may find that some extra motivation is required. Some great tools for this include a fitness tracker, which automatically tracks your workouts and gives you applicable results afterward, and a pair of wireless earphones, which lets you listen to your favorite songs cord-free. While there are many earphones on the market, you should consider a pair that’s essential for strenuous workouts. The Beats Powerbeats3 Wireless Earphones and Jaybird X3 Sport Bluetooth Headphones, for example, come with different sizes of ear tips so that you don’t have to worry about them falling out while breaking a sweat. 

Sip More Water Each Day

Drinking more water can help your body get rid of toxins and provide your joints with much-needed lubrication. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drinking to thirst and having water with meals is often enough to keep healthy people hydrated.

However, studies note that even mild dehydration can affect your cognition. You might experience attention problems and “impaired decision making,” according to one study. Achieving the standard amount of eight eight-ounce glasses of water per day is an ideal target for most adults — and it’s helpful for brain health.

Keep Sleep Routines Regular

Getting adequate sleep is crucial for wellness. However, getting regular, high-quality sleep is even more vital. Psychology Today highlights that “disrupted, poor quality sleep” may be responsible for increasing the risk of certain cancers like breast, thyroid, and prostate cancer. Losing out on sleep can even let cancer take over more aggressively.

Combating the health risks of inadequate or bad quality sleep involves sticking to a more regular sleep schedule and allowing yourself enough time to rest. Supporting your body’s natural circadian rhythms lets your body recover and operate more efficiently. Sleeping for seven to nine hours per night is also ideal for most adults.  

Don’t Forget About Hand Washing

With so many germs hiding on surfaces and in the air, it’s understandable that people get sick year-round. But research suggests that the biggest threat to our health is germs on our hands. Hand washing is instrumental in the prevention of cold and flu viruses, avoiding food poisoning, and steering clear of bugs like salmonella and E. coli.

And the steps are simple: Wash your hands before eating, before touching your face, and after using the restroom or touching potentially contaminated surfaces. You should get your hands wet, lather up, scrub with soap for at least 20 seconds, and then rinse thoroughly.

With the addition of these straightforward health strategies, you can feel better and get sick less often. The best part is that you don’t need fancy equipment or a lot of time to do it.  

Photo via Unsplash

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