This week, we're all about how tricking yourself into healthy habits can be playful and simple, while improving your overall health at the same time. Whether your goals are fitness based, nutritionally sound, or mindfully conscious, our tips this week are sure to get you in the mood to celebrate April Fool's Day all year long!
How to Eat Healthier: Swap for Success
Many of us struggle with eating a healthy, balanced diet due to the abundance of unhealthy food options at a fast pace and ready-when-you-need-it availability.
Kick unhealthy plates to the curb by swapping chips and dip for vegetables and salsa. Trade cereal for oatmeal with raisins or walnuts. Feed an ice cream craving with a bowl of frozen bananas, blueberries, and strawberries. Your mind will still benefit from the act of snacking, and your psyche will thank you for what it thinks is your habitual snack habit. What they don't know is that the incoming snack foods are much healthier and better for you in the long run.
How to Feel Happier: Take 5 for the 5% Rule
Stress, anxiety, deadlines, appointments, and emergencies are all cause for concern as well as mental deterioration. We're overwhelmed and under-joyous, which makes feeling centered and at peace that much more difficult. Use the 5% Rule to instantly see and feel your happy meter fill up fast:
Ask yourself, "If I were 5% happier today, I would ________." Dedicate yourself to that 5%, about an hour a day, to let happiness in.
Alternately, "If I were 5% more responsible today, I would _______."
This gives the opportunity to relieve overwhelming stress and schedules without needing to rearrange your entire day.
How to Boost Focus: Unfamiliarity
Surprisingly, bringing in ambient sound and new-to-you elements when working on a tough project can boost your productivity! Focus at Will reported that when sitting down to focus, choosing the kind of music you'd like to listen to is only half the decision. After you've found your groove worthy playlist, take a 180 and listen to the opposite genre. Astoundingly, when we're primed to listen to music we find pleasurable, dopamine is released by the brain which distracts, rather than centers, our energy. "Music that is associated with good times will reduce the focus enhancing benefits for productivity. So if you never listen to classical music, try it for this [...] and the opposite is true. If you always listen to jazz, try the ambient channel."
Which tips surprised you the most? Share your stories! Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtag #rylwellnesswednesday and #roswellyogalife!