Everyone knows that eating healthy food and exercising is “good for you”, but what exactly are the benefits of living a healthy lifestyle?
It’s a long list, but we’ve narrowed down our top 4 …
Healthy Weight
It’s the most obvious benefit because it’s one of the first things we notice. Eating well and sticking to healthy habits will help you reach and maintain a healthy weight; this comes with a number of benefits both inside and out. There’s a lot to be said for fitting comfortably in your clothes, feeling confident in yourself and the joy that comes with achieving little goals as you progress along your journey. But it goes even deeper …
Healthy Body
In the short term, your body benefits from a healthy lifestyle in a number of ways. A healthy diet leaves skin, hair and nails healthy and refreshed and proper nutrition keeps bones and teeth strong.
In the long term, what you eat and your lifestyle habits can help you to prevent and combat disease. The risk of developing diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, a range of other lifestyle related diseases and some cancers can be significantly lowered by maintaining a healthy eating plan and fitting in some moderate exercise.
Healthy Mind
Feeling confident and having a healthy perception of yourself is definitely a great step towards a healthy mind, but the effects of a healthy lifestyle on the mind go further still. We all know that exercising leads to the release of ‘feel good’ hormones which improve our mood and take our mind off our day-to-day stress.
What is surprising to some is the role that food plays. The right foods act as a ‘brain booster’, helping to improve mood and cognitive function. Eating well does not only help lower risk of the physical conditions mentioned above, but also has an impact on mental wellbeing and propensity for depression.
Day-to-Day Perks
One of the most commonly reported benefits of a healthy lifestyle is better sleep and improved energy levels. This is a result of the positive effects healthy foods have on the body, compared to the negative effects of ‘junk foods’. For example, foods high in sugar often disrupt sleep patterns and provide a short spike in energy levels followed by a crash, leaving you feeling fatigued and hungry rather than energised and sustained.
Having a healthy mind and body, and feeling energised and able to accomplish more, feeds back to a positive experience of daily life. It also allows you to take part in things you may not have known you were missing. For example, being able to play with your kids, reach down to tie your shoe laces, and having the confidence to try new experiences.
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