Every human being is the author of his own health or disease – Buddha
Let’s admit it, the world we live in is indeed crazy! And just before you ask how? Let’s take into consideration our new found obsessions- one with being healthy which translates to well-toned bodies and beefy muscles and another with living life in the fast lane, working long hours, eating junk food, partying late! It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that with our kind of lifestyle, we had to become unhealthy sooner or later.
And with the average Indian’s life expectancy being pegged at 63.2 years, we sure aren’t living long! Plus being one of the leading nations when it comes to the population suffering from heart ailments, diabetes etc, is not helping our cause one bit. So the question remains, what do we do to ensure a long healthy life?
The answer is surprisingly simple, all one needs to do is ‘live strong to live long’!
What does living strong mean?
Though living strong may sound like a very hard task at first, it isn’t so! Rather it’s a very simple task, which keeps moderation as its base. Just as over exercising puts you at a risk of injury or results in actual injury, so does over eating, as it increases your chance of becoming over weight which can lead to many more health problems.
Practicing moderation doesn’t take much; all we have to do is be mindful about the things we do such as eating, exercising as well as be mindful about the little things such as buying fresh fruits and vegetables at the market instead of opting for the ready-to-eat items. Making conscious decisions also plays a big part in living strong, as it’s only when we start making conscious decisions on our part to be healthy that we will live strong and live long!
How to live strong to live long?
To lead a long and healthy life, one needs to make positive, healthy and conscious choices such as,
Eating healthy should not be restricted to the consumption of fresh fruits, meat and vegetables! Sure, all fruits, meat and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals and nutrients needed to make you healthy with some containing a lot more than others! You need to mindful of the benefits offered by each food item and how they will help in your cause of living long and strong!
For e.g. some examples of good longevity food are fresh Spinach, Brussels sprouts, lean meat, eggs and fresh water as well as salt water fish for the DHA and Omega – 3 fatty acids, which help protect you from cognitive impairment and heart diseases as you age. Soy products, Red Bell Peppers, beet- root, oranges, blueberries, walnuts, almonds etc are all good options when it comes to foods which help increase your longevity and also keep you healthy in the process.
Eating smart is one way to achieving health and a long life. Amongst many other things it includes portion control i.e. smaller portions of food. These mini-lunches or dinners had at regular intervals as opposed to heavy lunches and dinners, are much healthier as they keep the hunger pangs at bay and help in better distribution of needed nutrition throughout the body!
Another thing that eating smart includes is the ‘healthy food choices’ one needs to make. Simple yet smart choices, such as going for brown bread instead of the white variety, eating chicken instead of red meat, opting for salt water fish over the preferred variety of Pomfret etc. Making use of less oil for cooking purpose or olive oil for the same, drinking alcohol in moderation and preferring red wine over white and so on…
One of the main reasons why people are living such short lives is because of the daily stress they soak in. While a little bit of stress is unavoidable in daily life, we have a tendency to procrastinate, scrutinize and seek perfection in our work and personal life too, leading to high levels of stress which have a direct impact on our hearts and other vital body parts.
To increase our longevity and keep up our health, we must seek to reduce this stress be it professional or personal. A good way to do this is to meditate, practice deep breathing, go for a long walk or listen to some favorite genres of music and so on…
Exercising regularly for an hour is the best way to increase your longevity. Exercise helps you to keep your body in shape by working on your muscles and organs too, albeit inadvertently. The increased oxygen intake while you exercise helps in the regeneration and healing of the damage tissues within the body. The daily exercise also helps to keep your joints in shape and limbs flexible, so that you are not bogged down by arthritis.
Laughter is not only important when it comes to reliving your stress and letting you relax, but it also has immense health benefits such as improving your blood circulation, giving you an internal work out and so on. Moreover laughter leads to the release of our ‘feel-good’ hormones, which puts our mind as well as body in a good, relaxed and healthy state!
So now that you know some of the simple ways to a healthy and strong life, living long shouldn’t be much of a struggle for you!
