If you look at fit and healthy people in awe and wonder how they do it, their secret comes down to two words: healthy lifestyle. They live a healthy life and everything they do centers around that concept. If you want to be more like them, here are five things you will have to start doing:
Eat breakfast
Listen to your mother when she tells you breakfast is the most important meal of the day because she is right. After fasting all night, get your body going by having a good healthy, and nutritious breakfast. Make sure it includes lean protein, healthy fat, and good complex carbohydrates. It gives your metabolism a kick in the butt that can last for hours, making sure that you are burning the maximum number of calories possible each day.
Always be on the move
If you are sitting still, you are burning fewer calories than if you were up and moving. Fit and healthy people are always on the go. They park at the far end of the parking lot, or they get off a stop or two before the closest stop to work, and then walk in the rest of the way. They take the stairs instead of the elevator. They ride their stationary bike, elliptical trainer, or treadmill at night while watching TV, instead of just sitting on the couch. In doing so, they burn many more calories than people who do not do these things.
Start your day with exercise
Exercising first thing in the morning not only gets your body going but also your mind. People who exercise early in the day tend to have a more positive outlook on life, which transcends to the choices they make, like choosing what they eat and how they burn calories throughout the day.
Cook and eat at home
As strange as it may sound, fit and healthy people only eat when their body tells them it is hungry. And when they do eat, it is generally at home (for breakfast and dinner) and a light healthy lunch most likely brought from home. If they do have to eat out, they make smart choices as far as portions and type of food – fresh vegetables and lean meats.
Along with making smart eating choices, the beverage of their choice is water. They know that not only does it hydrate them better than any other drink, but water contains no calories, which in many other drinks comes from added sugar.
Don’t obsess over your body
If you are a scale watcher, you can learn a lot from fit and healthy people. They don’t even have to look at a scale, because they know their healthy lifestyle and habits will keep them around the same weight. They typically consume and burn off around the same number of calories each day, thus keeping them at the same weight … within a few pounds. Most healthy and fit people monitor their fitness level by how tight (or loose) their clothes feel.
Doing these five things routinely will put you in the healthy and fit category. If losing weight, ensure you burn around 500 calories more per day than you eat. Once at goal, then add in 500 more calories to maintain your current weight. Once you choose a healthy lifestyle, you will never have to worry about dieting again.