BOOST YOUR WELLNESS AND REACH YOUR GOALS DAY BY DAY WITH THESE HEALTHY DAILY HABITS THAT WILL IMPROVE YOUR LIFE.
You want to live a healthy lifestyle but feel overwhelmed. Maybe the whole idea of healthy living seems out of reach or unsustainable. Or like it requires too much brain power, too much effort, too much time.
The truth is that developing good habits does take some thought. After all, it’s easier to do nothing than make any sort of positive change.
But rest assured, you can absolutely realize the benefits of healthy living without making any major lifestyle shifts!
All it takes is making small, meaningful changes one day at a time — those healthy daily habits that fuel your mind and body, draw you closer to your goals and bring you joy along the way.
And while there are countless ways to transform your life for the better, this list of healthy daily habits includes 9 of my favorite ways guaranteed to make a positive and lasting difference.
1. Wake up a wee bit earlier
A whole lot of good can come from waking up earlier. Probably the most obvious way it can improve your life is by giving you more time in your day. And really, we could all benefit from more time.
Rising early could give you extra time to:
- Start a healthy morning routine
- Do morning stretches to start the day
- Spend quiet time in meditation or prayer
- Fit in your daily fitness session
- Enjoy a nutritious breakfast
- Work on your goals or side gig
How much earlier you want to wake depends on you — your schedule, priorities and goals. That being said, between 30 minutes to 1 hour is enough time to make a positive impact, but not so much to cause major sleep deprivation (considering you get to bed at a decent hour).
Be intentional with this time to get the most out of it. After all, there’s probably a good reason why you want to pull yourself out of slumber earlier. So once you’re up, stay focused on your purpose so that you don’t let that precious time go to waste.
Struggling to become an early riser? I’ve been there and I still struggle from time to time. What helps me rise an hour earlier than I really have to is 1) getting to bed at a decent hour (7+ hours usually does the trick), and 2) remembering my why.
2. Keep a healthy evening routine
Establishing a healthy evening routine can do wonders for your mind and body. Having one in place allows you to unwind, focus on yourself and spend quality time with your family. Not to mention, get better sleep at night.
A few healthy bedtime habits you can incorporate in your daily life include disconnecting from the digital world, journaling for 10 minutes about your day, sipping on a cozy cup of tea (Tulsi tea is my favorite nighttime tea) or stretching.
But experiencing the full benefits of a healthy evening routine isn’t always possible if bad bedtime habits are ruining your efforts. Unhealthy evening habits can come in all shapes and sizes, so be sure to read about these 10 bedtime habits that aren’t doing you any favors, plus what to do instead.
3. Drink a smoothie
Healthy eating matters, sis. From boosting your energy to preventing diseases, eating well is a major part of leading a healthy lifestyle that can improve your life drastically.
Smoothies are one of the easiest ways to fill your day with nutritious foods. So much goodness in one glass! Seriously, with a smoothie you can sneak veggies, fruits and superfoods into your diet that you might not normally consume otherwise.
For my daily smoothie, I make sure to pack it with all of my favorite power foods:
- Oat milk
- Baby spinach
- Banana + berries
- Old-fashioned oats
- Hemp hearts + chia seeds
- Matcha
- Maca powder
- Cacao nibs
- Collagen powder
Then use my trusty Nutri Ninja to blend it all.
You think of smoothies and think yuck? There are a ton of delicious recipes you can try to find something you enjoy. And if you’re not a big fan of drinking green smoothies, you’re in luck because kale or spinach isn’t a requirement.
Minimalist Baker has excellent smoothie recipes to browse through. My personal favorite of theirs is this beet and berry smoothie.
4. Move that body
Our bodies weren’t designed to sit stationary for hours on end, but many of us do just that. Go to work and sit behind a desk, come home and sit on the couch. Sound familiar?
On the whole, moving your body every day is incredibly important for your health and wellbeing.
And though exercising regularly is a habit that would surely do you good (and one I strongly recommend picking up), you don’t have to hit the gym or run a mile to move your body every day.
The kind of movement I’m talking about looks like a 15 minute morning, lunch or evening walk, standing up from your chair every hour to stretch or using a standing desk and motion board at work.
Other simple ways to squeeze in more daily movement include:
- Setting an alarm as a reminder to take 250 steps every hour
- Walking around the house or do calf raises during activities like brushing your teeth, talking on the phone or watching TV
- Parking farther away from your office or destination
5. Clean something every day
Cleaning something daily can improve your life in more ways than one. Not only will maintaining your space cut down on the amount of dust and germs that can gather (even in the most unexpected places), but it can inspire feelings of accomplishment as well as reduce general stress and overwhelm.
Luckily, cleaning something every day doesn’t have to take up a lot of your time.
You could tidy up your office desk, relocate dirty clothes from the floor to the hamper, make your bed, wipe down your coffee table or do a quick pass around the house with the duster. (Side note: I will forever love using my lambswool duster, which makes dusting a breeze!)
Even something like cleaning the toilet can seem like a big to do, but in reality doesn’t take any longer than 10 or 15 minutes.
Plus, maintaining your space rather than letting things pile up reduces the amount of time you have to spend cleaning on your dedicated clean-the-house day. Win!
6. Unplug from the digital world
No getting around it, technology is part of everyday life. But that doesn’t mean every waking moment should be spent hooked to a device.
Truth bomb: Too much screen time prevents you from actually living. It can also have a negative impact on productivity, self-esteem and even sleep. Screen time is sneaky like that.
Of course, social media and whatnot is a nice distraction and can certainly provide some laughs. Just leave some time to focus on the present, too. Try this:
- Disconnect from everything digital 30 minutes before bedtime
- Put away devices while you’re cooking dinner to spend quality time with your loved ones
- Instead of watching the next episode on Netflix, focus on yourself for 30 minutes — practice gratitude, work towards your goal or side gig, pursue a new creative hobby, fit in a fitness session
7. Plan out your day
Time is valuable and there never seems to be enough of it. All the more reason to plan your day if you want to achieve more in life!
In all, creating a daily plan helps you make the most of all the minutes.
It helps you establish a routine, set priorities, manage time and track progress. With a plan, you’re more likely to stick to your goals and actually accomplish what you want rather than get distracted and lose your momentum.
Make planning your day part of your morning or evening routine. Start with a big picture look at your week or day. Break down your main goals into smaller tasks. Think about how long you should devote to each task and be realistic with how much you can accomplish in one day.
Start today with my daily planner printable I created to help you plan your day effectively. Or, get even more bang for your buck with the daily, weekly and monthly planner bundle!
8. Prioritize yourself
Putting yourself first isn’t selfish.
Actually, taking little moments for you and prioritizing yourself (even if only for five minutes) on a daily basis is key to living a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Sure, focusing on you is easier said than done, but that doesn’t make it any less important.
An uninterrupted hour, glass of wine and bubble bath is nice, no doubt. But we all know that’s not the only way to take care of ourselves. Getting the right amount of quality sleep, drinking enough water, eating a nutritious breakfast and exercise are all ways to practice self love.
So would be jumpstarting your day with a healthy morning routine, spending time outside, trying something new, doing something you enjoy or developing a skill. It can even mean letting something go when you’ve got too much on your plate or when life leads you in a new direction.
9. Enjoy a daily glass of lemon water
First off, staying hydrated throughout the daily is a big deal. (Here are a few helpful tips on how to drink enough of it every day.) But on top of drinking the recommended amount, squeeze a lemon into one of those glasses!
Lemons are an especially good source of vitamin C — one is about 21% of the recommended daily value. Between that and being rich in flavonoids, adding lemon juice to your diet can:
- Lower inflammation
- Reduce the risk of diseases
- Prevent kidney stones
- Improve digestion
- Act as a mood booster
Turning drinking lemon water into a daily habit didn’t come overnight for me. But now that it is, I can’t go without. I simply squeeze the juice from one whole lemon (using a citrus squeezer like this one) into a glass of iced water at dinnertime.
No joke, drinking lemon water is absolutely one of my favorite parts of the day. I’ve even been known to proclaim my love for lemon water with a hearty “Lemon water is so gooooood!” as I prepare it. So refreshing, so yum! 🍋
Before you go, join my free 7-day wellness challenge to kickstart your path to healthy, happy living!
What healthy daily habits have made a difference in improving your life? On the other hand, what habits do you want to pick up moving forward? Share in the comments below!
RELATED READS:
- Nighttime routine habits for a renewed you
- Bad bedtime habits you need to ditch for better sleep
- The best self care product to soothe you
All excellent habits that we should all strive for.
100%. Thanks for stopping by!