Rather than relying on superfoods and weird exercises, what fit people really do is build simple healthy habits and stick to them. Here are 5 healthy habits YOU can start immediately, and sustain long-term.
If you were to use social media ‘influencers’ as your main research source, you would conclude that the healthy habits of fit people revolve around weird foods, sketchy supplements, and hardcore fitness programs.
However, it’s not Supplement X or Superfood Y that’s the sole reason for someone getting in great shape. These five healthy habits have done 90% of the heavy lifting for the majority of fit people:
1. Prioritise Sleep for Metabolism & Recovery
Getting an average of eight hours of sleep per night is a key healthy habit to build to recover mentally from a stressful day, and physically from exercise.
Adequate sleep regulates metabolism and hunger signals, so you can avoid gaining weight by overeating. Tonight, get to bed 8-9 hours before you need to get up tomorrow.
2. Eat Healthily by Planning & Shopping Correctly
One fundamental healthy habit of fit people is the ability to stick to a healthy eating plan.
You can do this by making a list of all the meals you will be eating in the coming days, then only buying those foods at the store. This helps you to manage your calorie intake, and limit your junk food consumption (by not buying any in the first place!).
3. Have a Workout Program That Works For You
If you have a crazy schedule, trying to fit in five hour-long workouts each week is a recipe for disaster.
So your next healthy habit to build is to decide when and how often to work out, then find the best training plan for those time constraints.
You will be much more likely to stick with a fitness program that fits your work and family’s schedules.
4. Drink Mainly Water for Metabolism & Calorie Control
Water regulates digestion and metabolism, boosts energy, improves skin and hair, and hydrates during workouts. But most of us don’t drink enough of it as it’s not sexy, is it?
It’s not a frappuccino, a smoothie, or a glass of Shiraz.
Fit people make a habit of having a large glass of water with every meal, and sipping on water during the day, ensuring the body is running like a well-oiled machine!
5. Limit Alcohol to Boost Sleep & Hormones
Healthy, fit people build a healthy habit around alcohol, by limiting consumption to just a few drinks per week. This avoids sleep quality and hormone levels being adversely affected. You will struggle to get deep enough sleep with alcohol in your system, meaning inadequate recovery.
Too much booze for men will also decrease testosterone while increasing estrogen, leading to fat gain across the chest.
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You can literally start building those healthy habits today, right? There is no Magic Bullet food, supplement, or exercise that will get you in shape overnight (sadly!). But the good news is that the healthy habits of fit people aren’t that unattainable for the average person.
Making water (rather than coffee or booze) your main drink, getting enough sleep, and having a healthy eating plan and training program that you can stick to easily will all help you get in shape without turning life upside down.
But when you do, promise me you won’t try and sell me supplements on Instagram, eh?!
