5 easy steps to get healthier today!

We read and learn many healthy things we should do and we know we need to start making changes, but the task seem so overwhelming.  There's a lot of information out there and sometimes it's contradicting each other.  Getting healthier can seem like so much work, but if we take it one step at a time we can all do it.    We know we need to, so here are some easy steps you can start right away.  Any change you make is going to be an improvement.  So let's go!  Let's get started...Today!

Start the morning with a cup of warm water with lemon

I know coffee is usually the first thing we reach for in the morning.  But what if we started each day with a cup of warm lemon water.  You will need about 1/8 of a slice of lemon in your water. 

Here are some of the benefits:

•  Hydrates your body.
• Boosts your immune system 
• Lemon is high in Vitamin C, B, Phosphorus, Riboflavin, Magnesium and Calcium
• Alkalizing & helps detoxify the body.
• Improves and cleanses the liver.
• Aids digestion
• Freshens Breath
• Aids in Weight Loss - Lemons are packed with pectin fiber which helps fight hunger cravings

Click here for more information on benefits of lemon water.

Stop drinking soda

If you are still drinking soda, then I'm talking to you.  It's no secret, the news is everywhere, soda is really bad for you. Here are just some of the reasons you should kick the habit today:

• Drinking soda is linked to many diseases including cancer, obesity, and diabetes. 
• Soda contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar per 12 ounce can!  
• Diet soda is still soda and it's filled with artificial sugars that have been linked with many diseases. 
• Soda is also filled with empty calories and makes you crave sweets! 
• Soda stains and corrodes your teeth.  
• Soda corrodes your teeth enamel 10 times more than fruit juices.  

There's so much more negatives to drinking soda.  Some of us are drinking several cans a day so stopping cold turkey may be really hard.  You can start by decreasing the amount you drink per day and go from there.  There are also many other options out there for substituting soda.  Start off slowly and decrease little by little until you no longer drink it.  Watch this and read this  for more info.

Get more sleep

I am still working on this!  I am such a night owl.  Staying up late is really the only time I have to myself.  I don't want to waste it by sleeping :)  The truth is our bodies need 7-8 hours of sleep each night to function properly and children need more.  Here are some ways getting more sleep helps us to be healthier aside from providing needed rest and giving us more energy.  Read this for more info.

• Optimizes immune system function which helps fight off colds, flu, etc.
• It boosts good heart health.
• Reduces stress.  Be happier and less stressed.
• Clearer thinking and better memory
• Weight control. 
• Live longer

Now this being said, I know some of us have trouble falling asleep so click here for some help with that.

Drink more water

 Notice I didn't say drink 8 glasses a day.  If you're already doing that then kudos to you.  This is an impossible task for me personally.  So I will say drink more water and your morning lemon water will count too.  If you drink 1 glass per day, increase it to 3.  If you drink 4 glasses per day, increase it to 6.  The more you start drinking the better.  8 glasses is ideal,  but going from 0 glasses to 8 can be daunting.  Just increase your intake and soon enough you'll be drinking 8 glasses per day. It's important that you try and be earth friendly and opt for a filtered pitcher rather than all the plastic bottles. Our favorite is Zero Water, recommended to us by my sister Madeline.  It comes with a small gadget that lets you test the water you normally drink.  It shows the levels of toxins in our water.  After passing your water through their filter it should read zero!  And it does!  We had fun testing different waters and were amazed at all the high levels.  I think we all know by now the benefits of drinking water, but you can click here for more info. 

Eat more fruits and vegetables 

You can do this everyday with every meal.  Eating more vegetables is huge and as always organic is best.  Did you know that the recommended serving an adult should have is 5- 9 servings per day! For children it is 5 servings per day. I used to have trouble with this so now I drink more than half of my servings in my morning vegetable juice.  Here are some ways to increase your fruits and vegetables:

• Make fruit and/or vegetable juices
• Make fruit smoothies, frozen fruit is a great option if you can't get organic.
• Add a fruit and a vegetable to every meal, more if you already do this.
• Add vegetables in your meals when cooking.  Like for example cutting up spinach into your lasagna, you don't even taste it and most importantly neither do the kids.

Click here for a great website for getting your kids to eat more fruits and vegetables.

I hope you are inspired to take some new steps that lead you down a healthier path.  Please comment below if you have any additional suggestions, questions and please keep me posted if you incorporate any of these into your daily routine.  Thanks again for stopping by!