Alchemists, druids, and witches from folk tales have been seeking the secret to a longer life. But we people know better, and we know there are several things we can change or do more of in order to prolong our life. On this list, you will find everything you need to know about living a long and happy life!
Physical Activity
Imagine this scene. It’s around 7 am, everything is calm as people slowly begin to rise from their slumber. Somewhere in the distance, you hear birds singing their song. You go to the bathroom to do your thing. You drink a tall glass of ice cool water. Put on your comfortable sneakers, put a brace on your knee from Your Best Brace, just for extra safety. And you go out for a run in the park.
Your mind is clear and at this moment everything seems to be absolutely perfect. You can live your life like this for the rest of your days. And for a long time. Studies have shown that people who maintain their physical activity in check are healthier and as a result live longer. Not to mention that stress absolutely melts away – which again gives you a longer and happier life.
There is undoubtedly something about those lazy days where you lay on your bed and comfortably stretch in it. And that is fine from time to time. But we only live now and if make a habit out of it, it’s going to become harder and harder to change something.
The best time to change is now. Start slowly. It’s been proven multiple times that if we try to juggle many things at once, one of those things will suffer. Eventually, you will feel bad for not reaching your goal and maybe even give up. That’s why every change must be gentle and slow. In time your new habit will become a part of you. It will be just who you are.
Healthy Eating
Every physical active person must eat nutritious food if he wants to remain healthy. Food is our fuel. There is a saying that you wouldn’t put anything in your car that isn’t gas right? The car needs gas to run properly. It may be a silly analogy but it’s the truth. If you don’t feed yourself with proper food you won’t ‘run properly’.
There is also a certain kind of will power necessary to start and try to eat healthy most of the time. Every special occasion brings with itself a lot of food, alcohol, cake and so on. But those are special occasions and there won’t be no harm done if you indulge a little. After all, that’s the part of any social gathering.
When you are alone or with your family, try to incorporate as much healthy food as possible. Any kind of vegetable, meat, eggs, dairy products, and fruit is essential for your body to function properly. It can be really hard, especially if pizza is calling your name from another room. But eventually, you will stop hearing that calling and will start to crave healthy food. The more you eat something, the more it becomes a habit. So think about your eating habits and just like with everything else start slowly.
Meditation
There are several studies which show that meditation does wonders for your mind, body, and soul. It has been proven that meditation increases blood flow to your brain. Which is essential for healthy and clear thinking.
It has also been shown that meditation decreases our stress levels. Thus boosting our immune system. Which is essential for longevity. You won’t get sick as much and that will boost your overall well being. Meditation slows your heart rate and reduces blood pressure which means that any unnecessary stress on your arteries will be gone.
Regular meditating slows down the aging process because there is an increased release of melatonin, DHEA and decreases cortisol which all have a great impact on the aging process. It has also been shown that it decreases anxiety and depression. Two major psychological problems almost every human has had an encounter with. Our nervous system begins radically to change which as a result cause the reduction of these symptoms.
Reading
Did you know that the most successful people like Oprah Winfrey, Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates all read around 100 books a year! That’s a lot of reading. But why do they do that? They lead busy lives and wouldn’t it be more convenient to just sit back relax and watch some TV.
Well, reading boosts your mental productivity. It improves your memory function and brain power. It has also been shown that people who read a lot have a lot more empathy, something we lack in the modern world. We tend to empathize with the characters from our favorite books thus increasing our empathy. That’s why G.R.R Martin said “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.”
Reading has been shown to be a much better fighter against stress than watching TV. You escape your everyday worries and immerse yourself in that fictional world. And if you read before you go to sleep, you will have a great night of slumber. If you make a habit out of this your brain will get a signal that it’s time to sleep. And there’s nothing better than to wake up feeling rested.
Laughter
Having a great sense of humor will not only get you a good social status it will also help you to live longer! There was a study in Norway in which they proved that people who have a good sense of humor outlived those who didn’t laugh as much. Humor can be a great way to strengthen your relationships with others. And when you know you have friends who love you and cherish you, you automatically feel happier.
A good laugh relaxes the whole body releasing physical tension and stress. And because the stress hormones are so low your immune system automatically increases, making you less prone to disease. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins which promote an overall sense of well being.
So the next thing you should do is – watch a comedy movie, go with your friends to a comedy show, share a funny story with someone, play with your pet (if you have one, if don’t with someone else’s), play with children. And remember that laughter is the best medicine!
Conclusion
And would be nice if we could all just go to a fountain of youth, get a sip, and live for eternity. Sadly, we didn’t discover the fountain yet, so we will have to do just regular people stuff. Remember to incorporate these good habits one by one, and soon everything from this list will become a part of who you are.
To read more on topics like this, check out the health category.