Five Tips for Living Your Best Life
Five Tips for Living Your Best Life
Written by:
Darlene Klassen BN/RN
Nurse Dar Writes
Individuals with intellectual disabilities will benefit both physically, mentally, and psychologically by following the same tips for a healthy lifestyle as generic athletes. Depending on the disability, adjustments may be required to optimally benefit each individual athlete.
Read on to find ways to make sure you’re in top shape, both on, and off, the playing field.
- Move your body!
Exercise helps to manage your weight, keep your brain healthy, strengthen your muscles and bones, boost energy, combat disease, and allow you to sleep better. Every little bit helps, and it all adds up!
Here are some easy tips to include in your daily routine:
- Park further away from the store entrance, take the stairs, walk the dog, or turn up the tunes and dance!
- Try a yoga class, go for a swim, ride a bike, or kick a soccer ball.
- Help with the chores: rake the lawn, wash the car, vacuum the living room; you’d be surprised how many calories cleaning burns!
However you choose to move your body, it can be done in small blocks of time. Encourage yourself, and your friends and family, to help you work up to 150 minutes a week.
That can look like 30 minutes five days per week. Sound hard? Look at it as 10 minutes of activity 2-3 times per day. All movement has benefits for your physical and mental health!
- Make healthy food choices.
Individuals with intellectual disabilities often have challenges with maintaining a healthy weight and with sleeping well. Evidence reveals that following a healthy diet may improve sleep and assist in maintaining and achieving a healthy weight. These are general dietary tips, and some foods may require alteration to accommodate different abilities. Food is fuel and to have a healthy body you need to give it quality food! Variety will keep it interesting and fun.
Try some of these tips below:
- Half your plate should be filled with bright, colorful veggies. One quarter with a protein such as chicken, beef, fish, or eggs. One quarter with a carb/starch such as potatoes, rice, bread, or pasta.
- Try some beans or legumes for variety and a meatless meal.
- Use healthy fats: extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), avocado oil, or coconut oil.
- Find healthy, nutritious, and delicious recipes online.
- Eating on the run or need a quick snack? Try:
- A handful of nuts, a piece of fresh fruit and a slice of cheese, precut veggies, or avocado slices.
- A healthy smoothie – water, protein powder, spinach, fruit, and away you go!
- Don’t forget the dessert! It’s all about moderation. Fresh fruit and dark chocolate are two simple, healthy choices.
- Enjoying some of your favourite comfort foods on occasion may provide a psychological boost, add more variety, and just make you feel good.
- Drink water!
- 8-10 glasses of water every day will aid your body in functioning optimally.
- Replace juices and sugary drinks with water. If you’re not a water fan, start by mixing your sugary drink with ½ water and continue to increase the water and decrease the juice until it’s 100% water.
- Sleep
Poor sleep is a common occurrence among Special Olympics athletes. There are numerous actions that can be done to increase and improve your quality of sleep. If you can, try for 7 to 9 hours of restful sleep every night – it will have you energized and bounding out of bed in the morning!
Here are some more tips for a restful night of sleep:
- Turn off all screens 2 hours before your head hits the pillow.
- Make your sleeping area as dark as possible.
- Keep your cell phone in another room.
- Eat a healthy diet and include dietary supplements such as iron, zinc, and magnesium as recommended by your dietician or physician.
- Decrease caffeine intake, especially in the evening.
- Take deep breaths and focus your mind on something peaceful.
- Keep your room at a cool temperature.
- Use a weighted blanket if you have trouble sleeping, feel anxious or have restless legs.
- Reduce Your Stress
There is a significant correlation between stress, anxiety, headaches, digestive issues, and mental illness, to name a few. Ridding your life of all stress would be impossible, but there are practices that will reduce it.
- Relax
- Find a quiet space. Assume a comfortable position. Breathe deeply using your abdominal muscles—4 seconds in and 6 seconds out. You should be able to see your abdomen rising and falling. Focus on your breathing and relax.
- Enjoy nature
- Take a hike and enjoy the fresh air.
- Remove your shoes and walk barefoot in the grass.
- Lie down in the grass and admire the clouds.
- Pray/meditate
- Focusing on a higher power or on a meaningful written passage may bring peace to a busy mind.
- Listen to calming music.
- Laugh out loud!
- Watch a funny movie.
- Read a joke book.
- Listen to jokes online.
- Watch funny animal videos.
- Sing.
Implementing these five tips will help set you on the right track to living and enjoying your best life. If you found this article helpful, make sure to share it with other athletes so we can all work on living a healthy and purposeful lifestyle!