Resolutions. Do you make them? The team at ForMen says, “Why Not?” Everybody has something that they could change for the better, so why not start now? We found a great list over at Men’s Journal and have listed some of our favorite ideas below.
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- Cook Dinner Four Times a Week. Sure, it’s faster to order in Thai food or nuke a frozen meal than prep supper from scratch. But what you’re gaining in time, you’re losing in taste, nutrition, and good health. Studies show people who cook most of their meals at home are leaner, have less diabetes, and consume fewer calories, less sugar, and less fat overall — including on the nights they do dine out. Commit to cooking four dinners per week using fresh ingredients. It might seem daunting at first, but there are thousands of healthy, easy recipes online and creative ways to turn one night’s leftovers into the next night’s feast.
- Ban Your Phone When You’re Not Alone. There’s no need for a full, weeklong technology fast. Instead, limit yourself a little every day. While you’re on a date, at happy hour with co-workers, having Tuesday night dinner, or really any time you’re hanging out with another person, put your phone away. It’s a small piece of sanity that will keep technologies from negatively impacting your mental health. And yes, when your date gets up to use the restroom, keep the phone away — chat up the bartender or check out the wine list instead.
- Start Taking Vitamin D. Assuming you eat right and take care of your body, you can do without the thousands of supplements out there. Except for one: vitamin D. Most men don’t spend enough time out in the sun year-round to produce enough D, and it just isn’t found in very many foods. But vitamin D is crucial for your bones, brain, metabolism, and helping you stave off diseases down the road. Take at least 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 a day — some doctors suggest more like 5,000 IU. You might not feel the difference now, but your old-man self will thank you.
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- Take the Stairs, Every Time. Climbing stairs instead of riding the elevator is one of the simplest ways to burn bonus calories. But if you make some vague resolution like “I’ll start taking the stairs more often,” you probably won’t. Get specific. Pick a minimum number of floors — 10 is reasonable — that you have to be ascending before you’ll allow yourself to take an elevator. Climbing 10 flights may be a challenge sometimes, but that’s the whole point.
- Shake up Your Lunch Menu. If your go-to lunch is a salad topped with fresh veggies and grilled chicken, congrats, you’ve made a healthy choice. But you can do better. Eating the exact same foods every day, no matter how nutritious, doesn’t provide enough variety to allow your gut microbiome to thrive. These bacteria eat what you eat, so consuming a wide range of foods is the best way to ensure a healthy, diverse collection of microbes, which is crucial to preventing disease-causing systemic inflammation. One study found that people who eat more than 25 different plants per week have healthier microbiomes than those who consume fewer than 10. Since you’re probably already shaking up your dinner routine, focus on lunch. Pack or order something different each weekday, and try a totally different menu the next week.
- Quit Soda (Yes, Even as a Mixer). Sugar-sweetened soft drinks are just about the worst things you can consume. They’re nothing but liquid sugar, enamel-eroding and bone-depleting acid, and a slew of chemicals. But you knew this already. So why the hell are you still drinking soda? Make 2016 the year you finally shake your daily Pepsi habit and trade Jack-and-Cokes for whiskey on the rocks, as it should be. Don’t switch to diet sodas, either. They harm bones and teeth too, and research suggests your body mistakes the artificial sweeteners for sugar, potentially increasing diabetes risk just the same as full-strength sodas.
- Start Waking Up at the Same Time, Every Day. Yes, even on weekends. A recent study reveals that adults who sleep in just one hour later on Saturdays and Sundays than they do during the week have higher BMIs, worse cholesterol, more insulin resistance, and increased risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. The issue with continually shifting your sleep schedule is it confuses your body’s biological clock, which winds up disrupting metabolism, hormone production, and other important processes. Nobody’s saying you should skip a Friday-night party just so you can get to bed and wake up early. But any time you’re able, stick as close as possible to your weekday routine.
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- Work on Your Career, Not Your Job, for One Hour a Week. Your dad may have put in 30 solid years at one company, but the likelihood of being a lifer in today’s world — let alone staying in a single career till you retire — are slim. Even if you have an awesome job now, your company could get bought out next week, your beloved boss might bolt, or your entire industry could evolve in ways you never anticipated. Get ahead of these situations by devoting one hour per week to bolstering your personal brand. Update your resumé, polish your LinkedIn profile, jot down recent work accomplishments while they’re still fresh in your mind, and build that professional website you’ve been meaning to. Also grab coffee with that guy you met at a cocktail party — you never know which casual acquaintances will become key career assets later.
Those don’t sound too bad, do they? Many of these tips are very easy to incorporate into your busy lifestyle and they could even save you some time as well. Happy New Year, ForMen readers. Look Good. Feel Good. Enjoy your new year!
Curated article from:
Men’s Journal
