The quality of our life depends on a balanced and careful lifestyle. It is not only common sense that suggests this, but also scientific research. One aspect that we must never underestimate is that we can actively intervene on our body to improve it. And the sensational aspect is that it’s never too late.
Obviously, if you start taking care of your body and your spirit from a young age you will be much more likely to age well, to live a healthy life even in old age; but your body is an exceptional machine that can adapt to new changes even later in the years.
Often, however, you reach a level of awareness , of knowledge of this information too late or in any case when life demands a lot from your commitments and it seems to you that it is not useful enough to start going to the gym, quitting smoking or drinking, taking long walks, enjoying the outdoors, meeting new people, reading and stimulating the mind. Habits, as the saying goes, die hard, especially if they are bad.
From a physiological point of view we are what we eat . Our diet is able to change the structure of our body: we can increase the lean or fat mass almost at will, you just need to want it. Our body (and therefore our health) is directly influenced by physical movement (especially if repeated over time and gradually increased) and by stress levels.
Just do some blood tests to understand how true this is: the values change over time. What I want to tell you is that you can actually make conscious choices to get better and prevent the worst diseases, the ones that in all statistical studies are at the top for causes of mortality or disability.
But why do we get sick?
Diseases linked to a wrong lifestyle are – alas – among the most disabling and dangerous ones. Food and lack of exercise are the main factors, as well as the environmental circumstances, i.e. the place where you live or work.
In ancient times, when man used his feet, horses or oxen as a means of locomotion, he was used to moving more, making more effort. This lifestyle, however primitive and outdated it seems to us today, has continued for almost the entire period of our existence on the planet.
Living in a non-consumer society, man produced enough to feed himself and his family, did not abuse potentially dangerous foods, nor did he consume packaged foods or junk food. Ultimately: our body is not fully equipped to lead a sedentary life, centered on an unregulated diet and a continuous caloric surplus.
Leaving aside genetic factors , you can positively affect your health. If you think it is too late, that it is too demanding, that you do not have enough time or tenacity to change, you are underestimating your body and its ability to create new habits , adapt and influence decisively your character by changing your personality.
Evolution can help you. We are programmed to take shortcuts and we can use them to create new habits based on automatisms. Your brain is able to rewrite itself, to replace the bad habit of smoking with that of a walk, for example. The same involuntary automatism that makes you smoke or eat too many sweets can be used to trigger healthier habits.
Once you make the positive habits your own, they will govern your character and shape your personality. Always remember, you are not lazy because you don’t want to move, but the opposite: you become lazy because you don’t move. If you start exercising, you become an active person, who simply moves on the basis of a habit.
What are the most harmful foods for your health
Nutrition is an important aspect of lifestyle. Needless to say, how important it is to feed ourselves: we do it to grow, reach reproductive age and live a life full of energy. When reduced to a minimum, nutrition is a supply of energy, which we must take to keep the metabolism going.
Unfortunately, as anticipated before, the wealth conquered by man, his preponderance towards other species, abundance (at least in consumerist countries) has a downside: there is food at will, ready, food out of season, easy to consume, tasty and tasty, close at hand.
All studies show that this dietary lifestyle has serious consequences if we are not careful about what we eat, if we lead a sedentary lifestyle. We eat too much, we often go into calorie surplus, we overdo the sugars and saturated fats, consume salty snacks and industrial foods packed in abundance, citing lack of time, economic convenience, ease of use as excuses.
Foods to limit or even eliminate:
Refined sugars: I have already explained in the article on the dangers of sugar, what are the harmful consequences of unregulated consumption. Sugar is insidious because it is both flavorful and hidden. It is used far and wide in packaging, often to add flavor to food that would otherwise become almost inedible. Starting to eliminate it from coffee or lattes would help. You can start reducing the amount to work on the addiction.
Carbonated drinks : they could be drunk if they do not contain sugar, but natural sweeteners such as stevia. The advice is to eliminate them from your diet and eating habits, allowing yourself some exceptions during hot days. Also no to energy drinks ( energy drink ), better water.
Desserts: desserts are linked to the Italian tradition, but their preparation is almost always originally linked to religious holidays. That is, to very specific and limited events in the calendar. This is because sugar was much more expensive before and therefore represented an exception, it could only be used on special occasions.
Consuming them regularly, in any form, is unhealthy. The consumption of sugar spikes the glycemic peak, does not satisfy and makes you fat both due to the calories and the excessive production of insulin. Sweets stimulate the production of serotonin, so that when you stop consuming them regularly, your mood goes down because those levels of serotonin are no longer enough to stay in a good mood.
Bad fats : often present in street food so fashionable in recent years, and generally in packaged foods of animal origin. You should choose the good fats instead, while limiting yourself in consumption. Use extra virgin olive oil, consume dairy products moderately and eat sausages occasionally.
Sale: too salty foods cause hypertension, bad for the heart and brain Give priority to low-sodium foods, drink plenty of water, eat fresh foods (salt is concentrated in packaged foods), don’t overdo it with seasonings.
Refined cereals: to be limited because they are similar to sugar and facilitate the onset of inflammation. Carbohydrates are a fundamental building block of our diet, but better if eaten whole: they give the same amount of energy and are healthier. To keep in mind if you have a sedentary lifestyle.
The most harmful habits:
Always stay seated: we live in an era in which most of the work is done seated at a desk, perhaps in front of a monitor. Today services are predominant and manual work is dying out. This type of work is not expensive from a caloric point of view and therefore affects our weight, plus it is also harmful. Constant sitting facilitates the onset of joint and muscle problems and promotes water retention.
Do not carry out any physical exercise : too many commitments or excessive laziness or bad eating habits can cause fatigue, weakening the spirit and the desire to exercise. But exercising helps burn fat, get back into shape, oxygenates the brain, improves respiratory and cardiovascular skills, even puts you in a good mood. You can practice many sports and it is up to you to find out which one suits you.
But you can start with a brisk walk. Remember that if your goal is to improve athletic performance or lose weight, you need to progressively increase physical work and naturally go into calorie deficit.
Watching too much TV or playing video games often: it seems that we have the talent to invent forms of entertainment that sooner or later will harm us. Watching too much TV, indigestion from TV series is not harmful in itself, it can be a pleasant way to spend time.
But being a passive behavior, it leads to laziness, a sedentary lifestyle, with all the annexes and the connected. The same goes for video games: children should possibly play outdoors, get away from tablets and consoles, run and have fun. Otherwise there is a risk that these unhealthy adult habits will develop.
Smoking and drinking too much alcohol: There is no need to explain why. You must limit yourself to alcohol, especially if consumption depends on a vicious circle of bad acquaintances and a form of escapism, of refuge, with which you try to postpone or forget the chores of life.
If you have special problems, look for comfort in friendships, in people who love you, or in psychological support. Bad mood or depression can lead to eating disorders. Smoking must be completely banned: it shortens life, there is little to add.
Our lifestyle and our character depend on habits
To set change and prevent disease, you must adopt a correct, functional, balanced lifestyle, which is in line with your aspirations for personal and professional growth . You will never achieve goals if you don’t get your life in order. Talent is not enough, just as simple willpower or becoming aware of a problem is not enough.
You have to act because by acting you replace bad habits with good ones, eliminate vices and addictions that endanger your health.
The great thing is that you can start discovering the weapons you have today that you can use to get better, live longer, achieve goals, and fulfill your desire to live a fulfilling life with the people you love. you love and love you.
Find out how to empower your life with the “Potential Nutrition” course.