Health and wellness tips for a balanced life. 💪

Good daily habits can make such a big difference to your overall health and your life. In this letter, I'm going to share 10 daily habits that have changed my life. I'll 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 overwhelming. Sometimes things slide a little, and that's okay. When you're making lifestyle changes, it's not about perfection; it's about doing what you can. Generally, I do try to do these habits at least three to five times a week during 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 that 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 in any water, and when we wake up, we can be mildly dehydrated. When we're dehydrated, our fatigue levels go up. So a 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.

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 first 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 benefit. 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 Calm - 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 Sri Lanka so a brisk walk outdoors every day does not happen year-round! It doesn't happen in the summer but for the rest of the year I do try to get outside because I find it's such a mood booster to get some fresh air, to get some sunlight and to be out in the greenery.

Now for me the brisk walk is not just a mood booster - it's also the way I get exercise. I am NOT a gym person I have never been in a gym person I just don't enjoy it who knows who 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 up the walk so I started to make my walks my exercise now the World Health Organization recommends that we get about 150 minutes of moderate cardiovascular activity 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 zone, so my walk actually counts as a workout. It counts as moderate activity, so that's how I get my 150 minutes of exercise per week through my walk.

Number four, in addition to the walk, I do exercise. The walk is great for cardiovascular activity if you're doing a brisk walk, jogging, or 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. 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, 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, it could be in your 20s or 30s, 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 bodyweights or free weights, but always speak to someone who knows what they're doing so you don't get injured. Eventually, when you know what you're doing, you could always work at 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 bodyweight exercises at home.

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 Comment your best health habits below.