The surge of life hacks has been constant. One hack after another, simple hacks for school, hacks for cooking, hacks for living alone and so on. What recently caught our attention is the different health hacks that have poured on the Internet. There are hacks to losing weight, improving endurance, lowering cholesterol, etc. Yet, we wonder where all of these hacks are coming from. How can we say for certain that it would work? Some hacks are easy to do at home, but hacks that can actually affect our health is another thing. We are busy people. We live through life jumping from one point to the next. So, stopping and wondering if something really works can put a toll in our time. Thankfully, you don’t have to do it for yourself. We’ve found science-proven health hacks that can surely improve your quality of life.
Below are some health hacks that are mostly used by busy people:
• One of the best ways to keep fit and healthy is through regular exercise. Making it a regular part of your everyday activity will increase decision-making, creativity, reduce fatigue and increase energy. Moderate level of exercise is enough to stay fit.
• Consistent workout is best for optimum health. Working out is best performed early in the morning. It can help increase your energy throughout the day and improve digestion. If you’re not a morning person, don’t worry. You can workout anytime of the day, as long as it is in a consistent hour. The body will be able to adapt to this and will crave for the exercise.
• Go to the gym midday or when there are less people. This gives you the liberty to use any of the machine and weights without waiting.
• Get the most out of your time by performing short but intense workouts. A few minutes of intense workout is enough to compensate a moderate workout for a one hour session. This is a great way to be efficient and time saving.
• People who are competitive are perfect for group classes. Due to their nature, they are more likely to have increased performance.
• The music you listen to can affect your workout. Songs that are 145 beats per minute are great for a regular paced exercise while 165 beats per minute are more applicable to runners.
• Prolonged sitting increases the risk or chronic pain, poor posture and obesity. Walk around your office every fifteen minutes or have a standing desk.
• Having a workout buddy who is fitter than you can help boost your performance and endurance.
• Working out with a fitness trainer will improve your intensity and motivation during workouts. Trainers also improve your attitude towards exercising.
• Swear a lot! Well, when you’re working out. Swearing increases the fight or flight instinct in the body, making pain tolerance higher.
• Out of sight, out of mind. This is true when it comes to junk food. The less accessible junk food is, the less likely we are to crave for it. Having stored junk food at home or somewhere visible triggers the mind to eat more. This is at times due to the junk food packaging.
• Smaller and darker plates can reduce your food consumption. The image of a small plate filled with food will trick you into thinking you ate more than you should. The darker the plate is the more unappealing the food becomes.
• Choose frozen over canned. If you don’t have the choice of fresh foods, the second best is frozen. Canned foods contain more sugar and sodium. Frozen food is more likely to retain its nutritional value and taste.
• Slow down when you eat. The faster you finish your meal the more likely you are left feeling unsatisfied. Leave time for your body to digest the food and allow it to rest on your tongue to soak up the flavors.
• Chewing gum or eating dark chocolate can lower cortisol (stress hormone) production and improve metabolism.
Above are some of the most well-known proven health hacks. All of these may not suit you or that you can use at the same time. Pick the hacks that most apply to your situation and start from there. As soon as you start incorporating these positive habits, you’ll experience a surge in your health and fitness.
