Are you looking for some simple but life-changing habits to help you begin to achieve your goals? Here are five simple life-changing habits that you can start today.
We all develop habits throughout life, but some people develop more good habits than bad habits. You can try to intentionally add good habits into your day to help kickstart better habits which will have life-changing results. While these habits are interwoven with my yoga practice, these can also be for anyone who wishes to make changes in their life.
1. Hot water + Lemon + Sea Salt
This first very simple habit is to begin each morning with a hot cup of water with lemon. You can also add Himalayan Pink salt, Celtic Sea salt or other essential minerals to your water.
Lemon assists with gut health and aids in digestion. Warm water is like fire, and keeps your digestion system working well. The lemon is an excellent source of vitamin c and antioxidants. If you choose to add the pink or sea salt it will help the body to hydrate, regulate pH and detoxify, lower blood pressure and re-mineralize the body.
This is a simple and effective habit to improve your health. It is best if this is the first thing you do each morning. Do this first, then have that morning cup of coffee, tea or your beverage of choice!
6 Benefits of drinking water with Pink Himalayan Sea Salt — Natural Equine Essentials
2. Scrape your Tongue
You might not like this habit at first. It is not pleasant to do, but there are many benefits from scraping your tongue. After using it a few times, you learn to tolerate it. You can buy a simple tongue scraper for a low amount here:
https://a.co/d/7aZdyM5
By adding this quick and simple habit to your morning, you have the opportunity to impact your future health.
Scraping your tongue improves oral health. It will help you to have better breath, decreased oral bacteria and less plaque. You can also improve your taste by scraping your tongue. I added this to my morning routine right after brushing my teeth.
Another method that I have tried is a rubber attachment to an electric toothbrush that cleans your tongue through vibration. I have tried both and I would say that the scraper removed more from my tongue. You can try and find the best method for you.
In the yoga world, tongue scraping and the color of your tongue indicates certain things about your health and what you have been eating. You can look more into the yogic thought on scraping your tongue if you are interested in learning more.
3. Movement Every Day
This habit is important. Our bodies are designed to move so making this a priority should be on your list. The way you choose to get up and move is up to you. Someone once told me, the thing that you don't want to do, is what you need to do in order to grow.
Personally, I get up and move by practicing yoga and lifting weights. I will also try to get a short, brisk walk in a few times a week. When I first started this habit, it was getting in a short yoga session or one of the others mentioned. I have now been able to stack those habits and increase my movement and strength.
Any movement that will aid in improving your agility will work. You can try yoga or Pilates, stretching, dance, walking, running, swimming, or anything that will get your body moving. Movement can help improve your happiness, fitness, health, weight, muscles and bones, sex life and more. So find what you love to do in order to get moving every day!
Exercise: The Top 10 Benefits of Regular Physical Activity (healthline.com)
4. Stop the Scroll
Social media is a big time-suck. You can spend a ton of time scrolling on social media without realizing it. Once you realize how precious time is, you will realize that scrolling on the phone is taking away parts of your life where you could be building memories or doing something beneficial for yourself.
I had to become so intentional with this one and every day continue to choose with that intention. I made the apps that I wasted time on most as smaller icons on my phone, but you could even completely delete the app for a while. I now take 30 minutes each morning for educational reading. Once in a while I open social media apps, but I try to mostly stick to Pinterest.
Take note of the time that you waste on social media and think of what else you could have done with that time. We all have deadlines, to do lists, and homes to care for. If you have kids, you know just how much of your time is spent on chores/errands/doctor visits. Even if you don't have kids, life is busy! You can always just set a time allowance if it's something that you truly love to do.
5. Meditate / Journal
Yes, sometimes it seems like a lot to find the time to do all of these habits. But you can meditate in a quick, ten-minute time span. Just the act of doing it each morning can make changes in your mindset and how you begin your day.
You can keep your journal near to where you meditate and spend a few minutes each day jotting down thoughts or things that bother you. Just releasing it onto paper or into words and can help you to process and heal. I also like to use a journal app on my phone. Another way that you can journal is to use the voice recorder on your phone to do a talking journal.
You will be surprised at what you notice when you start to meditate and journal. You will continue learning about yourself and notice new things. You might work through problems that you couldn't work through before.
