HEALTHY HABITS - 10 daily habits that changed my life (science-backed)

Good daily habits can make such a big difference to your overall health and your life .

In this video , I'm going to share 10 daily habits that have changed my life in many different ways .

If you're interested , keep watching for today's video , we're gonna talk about 10 daily habits that have made a really big difference to my life in different areas such as physical health , emotional health and brain health .

Before we dive in , I wanted to say a few things .

So , you know , the context , the first thing is these daily habits have been the result of gradual habit forming over the last five years .

It's not something that happened overnight .

It is difficult to form habits and it does take time .

The second thing , although these habits are daily habits , I don't put pressure on myself to do them every day , especially when things get too busy or things are too overwhelming .

Sometimes they slide a little and that's ok when you're making lifestyle changes .

It's not about perfection .

It's about doing what you can .

And generally I do try to do these habits at least 3 to 5 times a week in the times that I'm really stressed out because I feel that they do help me stay on track and they do help reduce stress anyway .

Enough with the introduction .

Let's get into the habits .

The first daily habit is I drink a glass of water as soon as I get up .

Well , not as soon as I get up , I brush my teeth , I go to the bathroom and then I have a glass of water .

I find that this has made a big difference to energy levels .

In the morning .

When we're sleeping , we're not taking any water .

And when we wake up , we can be mildly dehydrated .

And when we're dehydrated , our fatigue levels go up .

There is some science behind this .

I will put it in the description box .

So good thing to do is start your morning by getting enough hydration .

I drink a glass of filtered water .

If I feel like it , I'll add some lemon to it .

I don't always do that and it's usually at room temperature .

But if you like warm water that can work too , it really is about personal preference .

But drinking some water in the morning is a great thing to do for your energy levels .

Number two , I meditate for 10 minutes every day .

I used to be very skeptical about meditation when I first started .

I didn't really believe in it .

I didn't think that there was science behind it , but there is actually quite a bit of science .

It can do things like reduce anxiety , it can help you improve your immune function , it can help reduce pain .

There's a lot that it can do .

I have a few links in the description box .

But for me , the biggest change is mental clarity and I feel much more calm .

I am not naturally a calm person .

I may appear on youtube , but I am not naturally a calm person .

Meditation .

Years of meditation has gotten me to this point and I really do think that there are a lot of benefits to trying it out .

Now , if you're a beginner meditation can seem very daunting and I have two tips to provide .

So the first one is try to just be very open about meditation .

In the beginning .

The 1st 10 to 15 sessions for me were very difficult .

I didn't know what I was doing and I felt overwhelmed and I felt like I was doing it the wrong way .

It wasn't until the 15th or 16th session that I really got into it and I started to see the benefits .

So give it time .

The second thing is if you are starting out , try guided meditation versus meditation , where you're just doing it on your own guided meditation can really help you stay on track and can really guide you through the process .

I use an app called CAL , I highly recommend it .

I love it .

There is also another app called Headspace which you could try out .

Number three , I go for a brisk walk outdoors every day .

Now , I have to say that I live in Canada so a brisk walk outdoors every day does not happen year round .

It doesn't happen in the winter .

But for the rest of the year I do try to get outside because I find it's such a big mood booster to get some fresh air , to get some sunlight and to be out in greenery .

And there are studies that show that exposure to greenery is good for your health as usual .

Everything is in the description box .

Now , for me , the brisk is not just a mood booster .

It's also the way I get exercise .

I'm not a gym person .

I have never been a gym person .

I just don't enjoy it .

Kudos to the people who enjoy the gym .

I would love to do that , but I just can't , I don't like it .

So for me getting exercise has to be something that's part of my lifestyle and I love going out for walks .

So I've started to make my walks my exercise .

Now , the World Health Organization recommends that we get about 1 50 minutes of water , cardiovascular activity a week or 75 minutes of cardiovascular activity .

A walk can count if your heart rate is high enough .

So when I'm walking , I test my heart rate .

I have an app on my phone .

Samsung Health is the app that I use and my heart rate is usually between the moderate and vigorous stone .

So my walk actually counts as a workout .

It counts as moderate activity .

So that's how I get my 1 50 minutes of exercise per week through my walk .

Number four , in addition to the walk I exercise .

So the walk is great for cardiovascular activity .

If you're doing a brisk walk or if you're jogging or if you're running .

But a well rounded exercise regimen should include more than just cardio .

I like to include some weight training and yoga , but I specifically wanted to talk about weights .

There's a lot of women shy away from it , especially because they think they're going to look a certain way .

If they train with weights , the World Health Organization recommends that the average adult do at least two sessions a week .

Why is it so important as we age , we tend to lose muscle mass .

It's a normal part of aging .

Another normal part of aging is losing bone density .

It happens , but we can slow that process down with one thing and that one thing is weight training .

So it doesn't matter what age you are , you could be in your twenties or your thirties .

It's never too early to start preserving your muscle mass and preserving your bone density .

If you're a beginner , you should always speak to a professional , learn the proper moves .

You could do body weights or free weights , but always speak to someone who knows what they're doing .

So you don't get injured and then eventually when you know what you're doing , you could always work at a home .

That's what I do .

I am not a gym person , as I mentioned earlier , so I don't go to the gym , but I will use free weights and body weight exercises at home if you're interested in the exercise channels that I follow .

I have them in the description box below Number five , I try to eat something green every day .

It's rather embarrassing .

But I will admit that even as a nutritionist , I find it hard to eat greens .

I did not grow up eating greens .

So it's a very foreign concept for me , but I do understand that they are very nutrient dense and it's a good idea to get some greens on a daily basis , especially a variety of greens .

You're getting a variety of vitamins and minerals .

If you're interested in nutrient density scores , I have one link in the description box below .

Now , if you're a beginner , the easiest way to add greens to your diet really is smoothies .

I find that that was the best gateway for me to get into the habit of eating greens if you're interested in how to make green , smoothies taste better .

I do have a video on it which I will link in the description box below .

Number six , I eat at least 2 to 3 servings of brightly colored fruits and veggies every day .

This is my bare minimum .

2 to 3 .

I usually try to eat more .

Why is it important to eat brightly colored fruits and veggies ?

Well , you may have heard of the term .

Eat the rainbow , eat the rainbow basically suggests eating fruits and veggies from different colors with different colors .

Mean they have different phytochemicals which mean they have different health properties .

Some phytochemicals can help with cancer prevention , some can help with liver , some can help with metabolism .

There's different reasons to have those phytochemicals and it's a good idea to get a variety .

So I do try to get at least 2 to 3 servings of fruits and veggies from those different groups .

If you're interested in learning more about eating the rainbow .

I have a link in the description box below .

Number seven , I listen to relaxing music every evening as a way to wind down .

So music has many different health benefits .

The science is still emerging .

But what I found very interesting is that nature sounds and relaxing music can help reduce stress .

It can help reduce the stress hormone called cortisol .

If you're interested , the science is in the description box .

So I do try to listen to something that's very relaxing flutes , maybe some nature sounds rusting of leaves , things like that .

A waterfall .

Those are all really nice to listen to at the end of the day as a way to wind down .

Just relax .

Number eight , I try to read or learn something new every day .

And I love to do this because it's something that I truly enjoy .

But there are other benefits to it , especially when it comes to brain health .

So as we age , there is that natural decline in our memories , it happens , but mental stimulation can slow down that decline .

So for me , it's reading , I also to learn new things for you , it could be whatever works for you .

If you're a reading person , read a book , fiction and nonfiction , both have their benefits .

If you're not into reading , learning a new language on an app such as Duolingo could work or you could watch something every day like short snippets on Ted Ed to learn something new .

It's all about keeping your brain engaged and stimulated .

Number nine , I try to spend quality time with loved ones every day and I want to underline the word quality time because a lot of us end up spending time with our loved ones , but we're on our phones and we're not properly engaged with them .

We're not really talking to them .

It's not good communication and this happens to everybody .

It's just the digital age that we live in .

I used to on my phone next to my husband and I felt like I was spending time with him , but that wasn't really spending time .

So now no phones .

I properly talk to him .

I spend time with my cats too .

I find that cuddling a pet or a human too can help you release Oxytocin , which is known as the cuddle hormone or the love hormone .

And it can help reduce stress .

Number 10 , I avoid phones in the one hour before bed .

So I used to be on my phone right before bed and I found it very difficult to fall asleep because my brain was all over the place .

It was very mentally stimulated and phones also emit something known as blue light and that blue light is something that your brain thinks is daylight .

So when you're on your phone and that blue light is going to your brain , your brain thinks it's not time to sleep .

So it won't produce melatonin very well and it becomes harder to sleep .

I actually have talked about this in another video on sleep , which I will link in the description box below .

But what I try to do is I switch my phone off an hour or an hour and a half before bed , the flight mode .

So I don't look at any notifications .

I don't look at anything .

And that way I'm actually able to sleep better .

I hope you found this video useful and you enjoyed it .

If you liked it , give it a thumbs up and don't forget to subscribe because I create videos like this every week and before you go , let me know in the comment box below , what is the one habit that has changed your life .

I will see you in the next video .

Bye .