HEALTH AND WELLNESS

How to use physical activity to improve mental health Physical activity has lots of benefits for your mental health.  It can help you manage stress, feel more confident and boost your mood.  It can also ease symptoms of mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.  Still, being physically active can be difficult.  In fact, up to 45% of adults and 30% of children aren’t meeting the government recommendations for physical activity - and this is understandable.  There are many barriers that can stop you from being physically active.  This guide explores the mental health benefits of physical activity and small strategies to help you add physical activity to your daily routine. What is physical activity?  Any movement of the body that makes use of your muscles and consumes energy is considered to be physical activity.  There are three main types of physical activity:  Physical activity with a moderate intensity  Activity that rai...

 10 Ways to Manage Everyday Stress Life can occasionally be stressful. Additionally, stress can be brought on by a wide range of factors. Life’s everyday hassles, demands, and pressures can cause stress too.   When you’re stressed, your body responds by making hormones that provide extra energy, focus, and strength.  This is called the fight-or-flight response.  At times, a small surge of stress can be a positive thing.  It can help you do well under pressure, be on time, or meet a deadline.  It can alert you to a problem you need to handle.   It can motivate you toward your goals.  It can push you to study, plan, and prepare.   But too much stress — or stress you can’t manage — keeps you from doing and feeling your best.  It can wear you out, sap your motivation, and make it harder to complete tasks. Too much stress can lead you to feel cranky, annoyed, or scattered.   You can’t avoid stress.  But you can make it a goal to kee...

5-Minute Daily Stretching Routine Flexibility is an important part of fitness and overall health.   Daily activities can be much more challenging without the ability to bend over, twist, or squat! By incorporating a stretching program into your daily routine, you can increase your flexibility and range of motion.  You can also improve performance in sports and daily tasks.  Stretching may help prevent injury and decrease pain associated with muscle tightness.  Try this five-minute exercise routine today to prepare for the busy day ahead or to relax after work. 1.  Runner’s stretch The hamstrings and hip flexors, in particular, benefit greatly from this stretch for the lower body. Low back pain is frequently caused by tight hamstrings. They might be worse for people who sit for a long time.  Equipment needed: none  hamstrings, hip flexors, low back, and calves were the muscles worked.  1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart. 2. Place both of your ...

 7 ways to jumpstart healthy change in your life The day-to-day choices you make influence whether you maintain vitality as you age or develop life-shortening illnesses and disabling conditions like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and stroke.  You may understand exactly what you need to do to enjoy a healthier, happier life: carve out time to exercise, perhaps, or find a way to ratchet down stress.  There's just one hitch.  You haven't done it yet.  Often, the biggest hurdle is inertia.  It is true that breaking ingrained behaviors like reaching for a donut instead of an apple or driving to nearby locations instead of walking is difficult. However, gradually working toward change improves your odds of success.  No matter what kind of change you want to make, these methods can help you make healthy changes in your life.  Seven steps to shape your personal plan  Shaping your personal plan starts with setting your first goal. ...

10 HEALTHY MORNING HABITS TO TRY NOW Your health may not be your first thought in the morning, but the morning is the best time to start healthy habits.  How you start your morning sets the tone for your entire day.  Here are ten healthy morning habits to try.  Start with one or a few and work at them until you’ve mastered them.  Then add some others.  You will be pleasantly surprised how your whole life can improve simply by changing your morning habits. 1.  You might think you don't have time for meditation.   But before jumping out of bed and rushing into your hectic day feeling stressed out and overwhelmed, take the first few minutes to sit peacefully in silence, breathing deeply and slowly.  You will develop a more profound sense of peace that will remain throughout your day, so you won’t be as reactionary when things start to go sideways.   2.  Set a daily intention or use affirmations  Take a few minutes to remind yourself of...

 5 benefits of drinking water in the morning Drinking water is very important for many bodily processes.  These include transporting nutrients to cells , regulating the body’s temperature , and lubricating the joints . If a person replaces their usual morning drink with water, it could provide them with several associated health benefits of increased water consumption. This article explores what these benefits may be and how much scientific evidence there is for each one.  It will also discuss different ways to flavor water and whether there are any risks to drinking water. 1. For mental performance Water may have an effect on mental performance and cognition . A 2019 reviewTrusted Source examined the effect of hydration on cognitive performance.  It found a trend of improved mental performance in hydrated study participants.  However, the findings were not statistically significant, according to the researchers.  Additionally, participants in the study dra...