5 Ways To Prioritise Your Well-being
This is a really stressful time for most of us. Many are rearranging their finances and are worried about future income. Combine this stress with a global pandemic, and our collective health is definitely taking a hit. This is an important time to remind ourselves how to stay healthy and how to practice self-care in all its forms — physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially. Unfortunately, we have to spend more time indoors now even though long periods of sitting leads to a decrease in overall health. To help you cope with these stressful times, we’ve compiled a list of reasons why it’s important to prioritize your well-being, especially right no..
Move More
There’s no doubting the mind-clearing benefits of moving (indoors or out in nature). It can help to do something in the morning that energizes you — a brisk walk, meditation, exercise. The added structure to your day can affect you (and your sleep and your mood), too. It doesn’t matter how old or athletic you are — one great thing about physical activity is that you can make it your own. The key is to focus on what you can control today and building a routine you can manage. Don’t judge yourself if you miss a day (or week). Think long term. Light exercise boosts your immunity compared to doing nothing. Studies have shown that even moderate exercisers report about half the typical number of upper-respiratory tract infections.
Get some sleep
As you build a routine that fits your life and makes you feel good, give yourself plenty of time to rest and recover. Rest is needed to reap the health benefits of exercise. Sleep is the most underrated health habit even though it is directly related to well-being. Sleep is also linked to performing at our best, and it helps us handle stress. In summary, not making sleep a priority can have a big impact on every aspect of your life and be detrimental to your overall health.
Be Inspired
The pandemic has reinforced our need for community, even though most of it is virtual. There is a lot of inspiration to be found online, from free Youtube yoga sessions to zoom workout sessions. There are many articles online on mindful meditations and living more healthily. Community is a huge part of our well-being, and now is a great time to tap into that space. Research shows that synchronized behavior such as dancing to choreography and group workouts can boost our self-esteem. Moving briskly and keeping in time, with others, makes us feel better about ourselves.
Boost your creativity
Creativity can help increase our sense of well being. If you don’t consider yourself naturally creative, one surefire way to boost creative thinking is to just try. Research shows that when people try to think more creatively, they almost always can — and those effects are both significant and repeatable. But the key to this is dedicating more time in your day to actively thinking, which usually means unplugging from email, social media and more. Creativity “nudges” can come from changes as small as a warmer cup of coffee or different colors in the room. It could also come from bigger changes like completely redoing your home surroundings. You can start small by switching out some of the items on your desk or simply orienting yourself differently.
Feeling your best feels better
Exercising more and being more creative can make us happier. It doesn’t matter how you decide to practice your self-care, as long as you are enjoying it and having fun. Remember that it’s all about feeling your best, not being the best. Physical self-care with movement is just one way to cope with stress and re-energize. Let’s also look to use this time to practice self-care in its many other forms; mentally, spiritually and of course, financially.
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