Healthy habits to stay healthy and boost your immunity
With the Coronavirus outbreak, boosting our immunity and living a healthy life has never been more important. It’s imperative to practice and maintain healthy habits that will keep us feeling good, energized, and strong not just for our physical bodies but for our mind and soul as well.
Simple ways to help boost your immune system include:
Eat a wholesome and healthy diet: that includes an array of colourful fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C such as broccoli, bell peppers, dark leafy green vegetables, citrus fruits, kiwi, strawberries (oranges, mandarins). Consuming whole-grain products, eggs and plant-based proteins such as pulses and beans. Adding healthy fats such as avocado, vegetable oil and a handful of unsalted, raw nuts and seeds to your meal plan while avoiding all processed, high salt, high fat, and refined sugar food items.
Enjoy cooking more at home, using different herbs and spices like rosemary, thyme, turmeric and oregano and adding garlic and ginger to your meals as well.
Hydrate yourself: by drinking plenty of water throughout your day and enjoying a healthy immune-boosting drink of warm water, a pinch of turmeric powder, lemon slices and fresh ginger to sip throughout your day while limiting your caffeine intake. Include some homemade chicken or vegetable broth.
Keep moving even at home: with the accessibility of various online platforms and apps being active at home has never been easier. This can vary from walking at home to dance cardio classes and yoga practices! Moving even for as little as 15-minutes a day will do your health, heart and mind good!
Before starting any exercise routine, do consult with a physician first.
Manage Stress and Anxiety: feeling anxious and stressed is a common feeling for a lot of us, especially during these unprecedented and uncertain times, and though we may not know what the future holds, it’s really crucial to stay focused on the present and not to panic. Create a routine or ritual every day that can help keep calm, feel safe and be mindful of your day, from deep breathing and meditation exercises, using useful apps such as Calm and Insight Timer, to cooking and baking, to colouring and painting as well as writing in a gratitude journal.
Get a good nights rest: allow yourself to go to bed early and get a solid 7 – 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Disconnect from your mobile or computer for at least 60-minutes prior to bedtime. Dim the lights at home once the sun sets
Routine is key in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. This period is not a time to try out fad diets or restrictive eating. It is a time to make positive and lasting changes to your lifestyle that will allow you to achieve optimum health and nutrition. Your health is your number one priority and like Virgil’s famous quote: ‘the greatest wealth is health’.
Stay safe!
