How to Prioritize Your Health With Simple Lifestyle Changes

There are countless ways that you can improve your health. Your physical condition, your mental state, financial concerns, and even little things like the products that you use to clean your living space can all lead to unhealthy situations.

Often addressing either potential risks or ongoing problems can feel overwhelming. The need to lose thirty pounds, pay off a boatload of debt, or otherwise deal with major issues can seem impossible.

Fortunately, there are many ways that you can slowly begin to improve your situation. Here are several tips to help you prioritize health in all areas of your life by using small, simple lifestyle adjustments to enact long-term healthy change.

Simple Changes for Your Physical Health

Physical struggles are often some of the most obvious barriers to a healthy lifestyle. Anything from a sedentary job to a full-blown chronic health condition can make physical health a major health priority. Here are a few suggestions for small ways that you can begin to coax your body toward a healthier state:

• Begin to take supplements like green tea extract which can help with things such as the immune system and cardiovascular health.
• Combat things like acid reflux by eating meals on time and sleeping in an inclined position.
• Brush your teeth with quality toothpaste that helps to preserve your oral health.
• Wear a Fitbit or other wearable tech to help you track your health goals.

Rather than taking on an ambitious goal, like blocking out two hours of each day to go to the gym or signing up for a weight loss program, start with something smaller. Use activities like these to help you create small changes and little victories in your physical health.

Simple Changes for Your Mental Health

Mental health has had a growing amount of attention in recent years — and with good reason. More and more modern struggles are linked to an unhealthy state of mind. If you’re dealing with anxiety, depression, stress, or other mental health concerns, you can start to fight back in little ways, such as:

• Taking time to meditate and pray every morning to calm and clear your mind.
• Focusing on an attitude of thankfulness and gratitude, no matter what your circumstances may be.
• Improving your sleep hygiene (i.e. the quality of your sleep) to help you get plenty of rest.
• Getting consistent exercise (low-impact, such as walking, is fine) to combat stress by releasing endorphins.
• Going outside to breathe fresh air and get plenty of sunshine.

Once again, these small steps may seem minor in the moment. However, when done consistently and over time, they can add up to significant changes in your pattern of thinking.

Simple Changes for Your Family Health

Your family is an essential part of your healthy state. Friends can also be lumped into this category, as the overall aspect of how you socialize and care for those around you can have a huge impact on your health. You can tend to the health of your family and friends in simple ways by:

• Scheduling in time to spend together, especially in an in-person, non-digital setting.
• Talking and otherwise communicating consistently, particularly with those that you trust.
• Building family habits, such as eating meals together,  or sticking to a good bedtime routine.

The way that you interact with those around you is very important. It requires patience, commitment, and attention. If you can spend time investing in your loved ones, it can lead to improved attitudes, a better atmosphere, and an overall healthier lifestyle.

Simple Changes for Your Financial Health

Finances and health are often seen as separate concerns. However, it has actually been shown that things like high levels of debt can be hazardous to your health. A lack of money can also create stress, impact the quality of things like food choices, and even soak up excessive amounts of your time. You can combat this tendency toward unhealthy finances in small ways by:

• Creating, updating, and sticking to a budget.
• Reducing the number of streaming channels that you have to one or two.
• Setting a discretionary spending limit for each month.
• Buying things second-hand whenever possible.
• Automatically reviewing the financial wisdom of any purchase that you’re considering over $50.

Long-term financial plans can feel overwhelming. However, there are plenty of small-yet-effective ways that you can begin to turn your finances around.

Simple Changes for Your Living Spaces

Finally, there’s your living space. While your personal health, family health, and financial health are obvious factors, your living environment is too often overlooked. Nevertheless, the state of your home can have all sorts of negative effects on your health. You can fight back against these in easy ways by:

• Getting air purifiers, humidifiers, and dehumidifiers to help regulate the air that you’re breathing.
• Installing a smart thermostat to help control the temperature of your home.
• Getting high-quality cleaning products that don’t have unethical ingredients, like ammonia, chlorine, or formaldehyde.
• Setting up a cleaning schedule to help you declutter (and destress!) your spaces on a regular basis.

Your home is a major contributor to the state of your health. Don’t let it slip between the cracks. Instead, look for small, easy ways to improve the state of your environment.

Finding the Simple Ways to Be Healthy

Getting healthy doesn’t have to be a crusade. Nor should it be completely focused on things like your physical body. 

Instead, it’s important to step back and consider all of the ways that your health is being impacted. Everything from your physical and mental state to your finances, your family, and even your home can contribute to both good and bad health.

Rather than letting the diversity of factors overwhelm you, consider each one and look for the simple ways that you can improve your current situation. Take a 10-minute walk to destress each day. Swap out those harmful cleaners for gentler alternatives. Get your finances finally locked in on a budget.

If you can take enough of these small steps to prioritize your health, they can add up and make a major difference over time.