☼ My perfect day: Healthful Habits! ☼

  

I imagine myself waking up to a room filled with sunlight. Sunlight not so bright that it hurts your eyes, but bright enough to fill you with feelings of excitement for what the day is going to bring you. We've all had those mornings, right? I by no means am a morning person, but sometimes upon waking up and feeling the soft light of the sun through my window just gives me this kick of good feelings and immediately amps me up. Soaking up some sun first thing in the morning gives me such a unique feeling of satisfaction, there's absolutely nothing that compares.

Now, take some time and look at your body. Your skin, your joints, the way you blink your eyes, the way your chest rises and falls to the rhythm of your breathing. Isn't it amazing? I myself am flabbergasted as to how it all works. And how strong our bodies are! We can treat our bodies terribly, and yet there it is, fighting with all its strength to keep us alive. I'll admit that I have not always been so kind to my body. Something in my head finally clicked; I should show as much love and dedication to my body as it shows me. And that means keeping it healthy as can be. My favorite healthy habits do a great job with that. ☺

• When it comes to the things I put in my body, I try (for the most part) not to choose things that are simply "low cal" or "low fat". I try to go for the stuff that actually benefits my body health-wise, not so much stuffing it with empty calories. So, on those days when I have time, I like to brew up some hot water and make myself a cup of green tea. Green tea is wonderful! It might not taste so great without sugar or sweeteners but I don't care, the benefits are enough for me to be able to gulp it down without so much as a wince. Here's why I drink it:

• It is filled with antioxidants which can help fight against free radicals and keep diseases at bay.
• It can help improve your brain function!
• It may help to boost your metabolism and your body's fat burning ability.
• It can lower your risk for Alzheimer's and heart disease.
• It may lower your risk of infections and increase your dental health by killing bacteria and viruses.
• Drinking green tea promotes relaxation and may help reduce your stress. ☺
  I definitely recommend it as your go-to morning boost drink!
  (sources: sofemenine.co.uk & authoritynutrition.com)

•  If we're talking about my perfect day, then I can't NOT mention my absolute most favorite thing to do in the world: go on a hike. A day where I go on a hike is automatically a good day, no matter what happens before or after. I've only ever been to hiking trails in my city but it is number one on my bucket list to visit hiking trails all over the world. Call me crazy, but I just find it so peaceful to just keep going deeper and deeper into the trail, alone with my thoughts, or if I'm with a friend, we can chat and unwind. Either way, it's a perfect way for me to release the clutter in my mind. I don't know if you guys have seen the movie Frozen but one of the songs has a lyric that goes, "It's funny how some distance makes everything seem small.
  And the fears that once controlled me, can't get to me at all." This is so true for me when it comes to hiking. Up on a hill overlooking the city, I feel so free, so limitless. My problems don't seem so impossible anymore. And it also doesn't hurt that I am a tree hugging hippie who loves nature. ☺ I hope I can convince you to go out on a hike today!

• It counts as a cardio workout. Do I really need to tell you about how cardio is good for you? Here's a link if you didn't know already. ☺
• It also counts as strength training! It strengthens your glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, hip flexors, lower leg muscles, and your core(which in turn improves balance!). Holy crap.
• Being in nature helps improve your mood. We are natural beings after all.
• It's a fun way to help you maintain a healthy weight.
  Try it out if you haven't and let me know how it went!
  (source: webmd.com)
  
•  My favorite of them all: food! No burgers and fries (those are sometimes foods :D), I gotta have something healthy for lunch! Our world is filled with living, growing food of all shapes and sizes. I'm talking about fruits! And vegetables! Meat is good too, but I nothing compares to the vibrancy and versatility that is found in the plant kingdom. Here's a few of my absolute favorites:
•  Beets:  First of all, these things are so BRIGHT! They will stain your fingers and clothes into a brilliant burgundy, I love that. :D And like most vegetables, there's so many ways to prepare them. My favorite though is to have them raw in a healthy detoxifying smoothie. Even the leaves are good for you. I like to use them in sandwiches and salads in place of lettuce.
• Avocados: These are a great addition to almost any dish. They add such a rich creamy taste and I absolutely love to have it whenever I'm eating something spicy. >:) I love to sprinkle some avocado cubes over this mexican brown rice salad I sort of made up. (Recipe coming soon!)
• Mangoes: This fleshy fruit is my favorite of all the fruits. It's sweet, but not so sweet that your cheeks will implode. Eating just one will have you feeling pretty full. (Well, I speak for myself on that one hehe) And one can't argue with the vitamin C boost you get after chowing down on a few slices of this delicious fruit.
• Blueberries: Ah, this tiny berry has my young ones going nuts for "Moar, MOAR, MOARR!!!" And I gladly deliver because I love how healthy these lil guys are. It's like nature's version of Skittles, how could you say no!?
  

I hope I haven't healthy-talked you into oblivion! If my daily life consisted of all the things I mentioned above, I'd be a way more balanced person, physically and mentally. (I'd be a lot thinner too!) It's vital to our happiness that we engage in things that bring us joy and health because life is too short to spend it thinking about and doing things that bring you stress and negativity. Find things that keep you happy and healthy. Kick all the excuses to the curb! Something I'm going to be working on from now on.

If you made it this far, I just want to say, WOW! Thanks for reading! ☺♥ Let me know what you thought, and let me ask you this:
What does your perfect day consist of? 
I'd really like to know!



(picture sources from top to bottom: 1, 2, 3, 4)