Why developing your own health and wellbeing strategy is essential

By Royston Guest 

Health is like money. You never have a true idea of its value until you lose it. If you have your health, look after it and do whatever you can to keep it. Once it’s gone or it has been damaged, it can be almost impossible to get it back, certainly to the same level you experienced previously.

If the day comes when you have to start thinking about your health in terms of how to try to get it back, you’ll find that so many avenues are already closed to you. At that point you’ll wish more than anything that you hadn’t made some of your previous lifestyle decisions.

This is the best reason of any to work on your health right now. The great news is there are preventative measures you can take immediately to protect your health and even strengthen it while it’s good, to earn yourself more longevity and greater quality of life.

Here are 4 reasons why developing your own health & wellbeing strategy is essential.

#1 Re-boot your mind

Think of chronic stress affecting the brain in a similar way to how simultaneously running too many programmes on your computer can impact its performance. Our brains are our computers and can become overloaded! Pausing and taking a few mindful breaths, focuses us on a short single task to clear our mind allowing us to refocus, stay calm, make better decisions and ‘re-boot’.

#2 Physical activity is good for your body

Fitness is a lot like most things: consistency and common sense rule the day. Make your fitness programme a fixed part of your lifestyle, not merely an ‘optional extra’ which can be easily swapped or dropped. You can go all out for the extremes now and then, such as training for a super marathon or getting ready for a tournament, but generally, your body will respond optimally if you train consistently, on a regular schedule, with a view to achieving marginal gains that lead to excellent health over time.

#3 You are what you eat

Fast paced living does not equal junk food, eating on the go or missed meals. You have an obligation to yourself to create a healthy and balanced diet which includes a daily mix of fresh fruit and vegetables, a mix of carbohydrates, fats and proteins. The discipline though is to stick to it until it becomes habitual and the default mode for how you naturally eat and fuel your body.

#4 Structure downtime into your life

It’s good to be focused and driven, and to push yourself to excel … but it’s also good to just do nothing. Being busy all the time is not sustainable. In fact, it’s a perfect recipe for burnout, and burnout isn’t just a metaphorical thing. Unwind with rest, where work or movement is ceased in order to sleep or recover strength, and relaxation, which involves engaging in activities that you enjoy. In order to give your best, you have to be at your best.

Life really has two meaningful dimensions: length and quality. How long you live may not be in your hands, but that doesn’t mean it’s out of your hands entirely. You can’t be sure of lengthening your life, but you can certainly do things not to artificially shorten it.

Your quality of life is something you can control in so many ways. It’s enough to make you feel really powerful. And who wouldn’t want that feeling? Whatever you choose, please be sure you’re willing to pay the price for it. Don’t ever find yourself in the position of appreciating something only once it is gone.

It's been over 12 months in the making but I am proud to say…RISE: Start living the life you were meant to lead is launched today. Thank you to everyone who has ordered RISE and supported me on this incredible journey. ? Use this link to get your copy https://t.co/A9k7aCBLei pic.twitter.com/VkRKMv2qB8

— Royston Guest (@Royston_Guest) January 10, 2019

Royston Guest is a leading authority on growing businesses and unlocking people potential. Entrepreneur, author of #1 best-seller Built to Grow and RISE: Start living the life you were meant to lead, CEO of Pathways Global and founder of The Business Growth Pathway™ and Pti Worldwide.

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