Summary: Ever feel like investing in your health is expensive? Well I’ll tell you it can be. But there are plenty of free things you can do to invest in your health that won’t cost you anything more than your time.
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Our culture showcases health as a luxury. And to some extent it is, but it doesn’t have to be that way. There are lots of things you can add into your day to day life to help you be healthier that doesn’t cost a thing.
Have a good foundation for your health is crucial. Once your have a healthy foundation set, you can add on the extras that you need and enjoy to take your health to the next level. But, without these simple things you might be missing out big ways you can easily bost your health.
10 FREE Ways to Invest In Your Health
1. Exposure to sunlight
Sunlight has many benefits:
- -provides us with Vitamin D
- -manages our circadian rhythm
- -boosts our immune system
- -improves our sleep
- -improves our mood
Just 10-15 minutes of exposure to the sunlight per day is shown to benefit you. While it is nice to be outside in the sun, that may not always be possible. Try drinking your coffee by the window and soaking up the morning sunshine, or reading a book near the sun in the afternoon. Just seeing the sun can greatly impact your health, even if you can’t be in it for long.
If it’s winter and you live in the north like me, try a happy light to help give you artificial exposure to the sun.
*note: the lamp will not provide you with vitamin D, like the sun itself does, so consider taking a vitamin D supplement during the winter months or boosting the amount of vitamin D you’re getting in your diet.
2. Get outside
Fresh air, like sunshine does wonders for your health! Being in nature is shown to lower your stress levels, promote deeper breathing and lower your resting heart rate– which are all great for your health!
3. Move your body
Have you ever heard of endorphins? They were once made famous by Legally Blond. But they’re a feel-good chemical produced by your body. And your body makes LOTS of them when you exercise. Moving your body is a great mood booster because of these endorphins, but it is also great for heart health, bone + joint health, and overall longevity.
4. Laugh
This is often a forgotten ‘medicine’. Mentally, laughter brings us together and helps you create deeper connections + bonds which is so important for mental health.
Laughter also helps to:
- -strengthen your immune system
- -boost your mood
- -reduces pain
- -minimizes stress
If you haven’t laughed in a while, give it a try. You’ll be surprised how much lighter your feel afterward.
ps. one of my favorite experiences was taking a laughter yoga class. There were moments that definitely felt weird and un-natural but even though this class was years ago, I still remember leaving feeling so different and rejuvenated after taking it.
5. Meditate
Mediation is so therapeutic for your mind. The power of meditation is in letting your mind wander and then returning to focus on your breath or meditative thought.
It is amazing for managing stress, lowering heart rate and respiration rate among other things.
6. Journal + Set Boundaries
Journaling is like meditation but with writing. Rather than letting our mind wander as we do in meditation, we let the mind wander, and write down whatever comes to mind. You can use prompts to get yourself started or just jot down whatever comes to mind.
If you’re looking for some guidance- you can start with these 30 Journaling Topics for Beginners, found in the FREE Resource Library.
Setting boundaries is also something else that shouldn’t be forgotten about. Acknowledging what you are and are not comfortable with and setting ‘rules’ to which you feel comfortable following can really help guide your life + mental health. Use this Setting Boundaries Workbook in the FREE Resource Library to get started with boundaries.
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7. Stay hydrated
How much do you weigh (in pounds)?
Divide that number by 2.
That’s the MINIMUM amount of fluid you should consume each day.
If you said you weigh 200 lbs, you should have a minimum of 100 oz of fluid each day.
Are you drinking enough?
If you sweat a lot (a hot summer day, or a good workout), make sure you drink a little extra to replenish the fluid you lost.
Hydration is also about more than just water! Using electrolytes is also really important to keep you hydrated. Personally, I love LMNT, but a Propel or Gatorade (zero- without all the sugar) can be another great option.
Your body is 70% water. Make sure you’re giving it enough fluid to function at its best!
8. Practice Grounding
Grounding AKA Earthing is the practice of connecting to the earth and its natural healing energy. Grounding has been shown to reduce inflammation, pain, and stress as well as increase blood flow, sleep, and vitality.
How do you practice grounding? It’s as easy as it sounds, expose your body to the earth.
When you’re outside put your palms or soles of feet directly on the ground, lay in the grass, swim in the ocean. Surround yourself with nature and let nature do its job.
Most studies suggest that 30-60 minutes of grounding is enough to benefit from doing it.
9. Breathe with your diaphragm
At some point in time most of us forget how to breathe properly. Few people actually breathe with their diaphragm, and rather they breathe with the muscles of their chest. Spending a few minutes each day practicing patterned diaphragmatic breathing is very beneficial at resetting the nervous system, managing stress, reducing tension, decreasing pain, and preventing injury.
Diaphragmatic breathing can be tricky to get the hang of since most of us don’t do it regularly.
But check out this video for a tutorial:
For more videos like this, check out the Free Resource Library for a Library of Exercise Videos for you to work through!
10. Sleep
Most people don’t get enough sleep! And this is problematic because sleep is truly when the body gets to heal. Without enough sleep, we expose ourselves to lots of problems
– poor immune health
– decreased capacity for memory and learning
– increased irritability and poor mood
– more pain and less healing
One of my favorite resources on sleep is the book Why We Sleep. You don’t have to be a sciency person to love this book. The author, Matthew Walker, gives an amazing explanation for why we sleep, how sleep impacts our body and why sleep changes throughout the lifespan. If you’re looking to learn more about the power of sleep, I couldn’t recommend this book more!
There are so many other ways you can invest in your health but those are some great ways to get started.
Once you have a good foundation with some of the things listed above add in your favorite treatments like chiropractic, massage or acupuncture as these compliment these things really well to help you live a healthier lifestyle!
Don’t forget, health doesn’t have to be a luxury or complicated. Even the easy simple things can be really great for our health!
Let me know in the comments what your favorite ways to invest in your health are. If you found this helpful make sure you share it with a friend or family member or save it to your pinterest for later!