Health and Nutrition That Is AboveNBeyond

In this day and age where health care costs are high and job loss is frequent, it’s easy to get caught up in the habit of putting your health on the shelf and worrying about it later. When I was in my early 20’s I purchased some health insurance since I was part time and had hardly any benefits. Well, with the cost of it, and the fact that it barely covered anything, I canceled it, thus, doing without it. And, yes, I was single at the time and it was easy to make those kind of decisions back then. There are some ways to cut costs to take care of yourself in the meantime (or all the time):
1. Purchase generic or store brand items that work just as effective and lowers cost.
2. Anti-bacterial hand soap to prevent the spread of germs
3. Always keep supplies on hand for that unexpected emergency
4. Nutrition – get proper nutrition to be properly fortified to fight off illnesses
5. Stay active – Regular exercise, running, walking etc.
6. Don’t smoke – Yes, this can have an effect on your health 
7. Hygiene – One rarely thinks of this, but, taking care of yourself here, helps too.
8. Avoid others – Stay away from those who are themselves not well or ill.
9. Already sick? – Deal with it as soon as you start not feeling well – by not prolonging it, you can cut costs before it gets worse.
10. Change habits – in addition to the above, changing your habits can lead to a healthier you.

If you are already doing all or most of these items, good for you! You are on your way. The more you can do on your own, the better off you’ll be. When able, you should see a doctor for annual checkups.

Ok, you’ve started a path to a new lifestyle, but, you see advertisements on TV and the newspapers, for those miracle pills that say they will help you shed that weight. Well, be careful, while some do actually work, there is no such thing as a “workout” pill in a bottle. You can’t depend on pills alone to achieving your goals. You’d be waiting a very long time to get to where you want to go by doing this. And even then, you may not get there. The best thing you can start doing is to change your habits. Here is a list of some changes you can start with:
1. Portion Control
2. Exercise (running, weight lifting, walking, jump rope etc)
3. Low fat recipes
4. Start reading and understanding nutrition labels
5. Weigh yourself once a week in the morning
6. Never reward yourself with food
7. Join an online community for support and encouragement
8. Team up with a friend
9. Don’t sweat the bad day and get back at it the next day
10. Cut the candy (soda included)
These are just some things you can start doing to keep you on the road to your goals. Every day will not be an easy day, but, consistency will be the key. It’s never to late to change your habits.