By: Jenna Satell –
Getting healthy doesn’t have to be hard. Here are five small changes you can make in your everyday life that will have you feeling stronger and energized.
Keep your coffee simple
Your morning latte or macchiato might not seem to make a difference in your body, but it does. Coffee alone is a metabolism booster and will give you a boost of energy to start your day off. When sugar, milk and syrup is added to make your brew taste like dessert, the health benefits go completely out the window. Try switching out your milk and creamer for almond, coconut or soy milk and add Stevia instead of sugar. If you’re bold, go for a basic black coffee. Remember that the purpose of coffee is to caffeinate, not give you a sugar high.
Say goodbye to butter
Whether you simply use butter to grease a pan, or add it into recipes, there are much healthier alternatives. Try out vegan butter or coconut oil instead. Switching out butter for these alternatives will save you from a lot of unhealthy fats.
Green is the new black
Vegetables like spinach and kale have so many health benefits. Remember the days where your mom nagged you to eat your greens? Well, she was right! Add spinach and kale into fruit and protein smoothies. Or if you’re not into smoothies, add spinach into your eggs to make your breakfast even healthier.
Take the stairs
You’ve probably heard this over and over, but it’s for a reason. Getting a little extra burn in will get your cardio vascular system in check. Make it a challenge for yourself to take the hilly route more often or climb up four flights of stairs instead of using the elevator. To track your steps, use the “Health” app on your phone and try to aim for around 8,000 to 10,000 a day. It gets easier the more you do it.
Know what’s going into your body
Just because a box of cookies says it’s “low fat,” that doesn’t mean it’s not packed with sugar and sodium. A quick way to educate yourself on what you’re eating is reading the ingredients and nutrition labels. If you have no idea what an ingredient is, look it up before deciding you want to put it in your body.