Healthy daily habits (1)

Healthy

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The average person carries up to 4.5kg of unhealthy toxic waste in their body, according to Dr Gillian McKeith. Fatty and sugary foods contain toxins, which overload your liver (your main detoxifying organ) if eaten regularly. The liver struggles to get rid of them, so they stay trapped in your body, damaging cells, affecting bodily functions, encouraging disease, and causing premature ageing and food sensitivities. To nip it in the bud, do a daily mini-cleanse by drinking a warm cup of water with a squeeze of lemon first thing in the morning, at least 30 minutes before eating.

Do  a  daily  mini-­‐cleanse

Pick up party platters and more for your next get-together at Foodtown markets. www.FoodTownNY.com

Pick up party platters and more for your next get-together at Foodtown markets. www.FoodTownNY.com

Use  Your  Lunch  To  Be  Ac8ve

It doesn't take 30 minutes or an hour to eat. So make your lunch break productive.

Go for a walk. (Better yet, find a walking buddy or do like LinkedIn's Jeff Weiner and have walking meetings.) Or stretch. Or do some push-ups or sit-ups.

It doesn't matter what you do as long as you do something. You'll burn a few calories, burn off some stress, and feel better when you climb back into the work saddle.

And you'll start to make fitness a part of your daily lifestyle without having to add to your already busy schedule.

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To allow the gallbladder to do its job (it detoxes the body from 11pm and 1pm; while the liver detoxes the best from 1am-3am), it's best to get some shut-eye early, according to Chinese medicine practitioner Jennifer Harper-Deacon. "It's important to be in bed before this element comes into power, as the liver is involved in filtering the blood. To do this effectively, the body needs to be horizontal because when you're up and about, the liver directs blood to the parts of the body needing it – the liver energy is diverted from its important physical function of cleaning and renewing the blood."

And make sure you eat before 8pm. "Any food you eat after 8pm will sit in your digestive tract all night, making you wake up feeling heavy, foggy and annoyed," warns nutritionist and naturopath Janella Purcell.

Go  To  Bed  Early

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Breathe  Deeply

Shallow breaths deprive the brain, blood and cells of oxygen, affecting concentration and can make one tired, cranky and stressed. It stimulates the body's natural 'fight or flight' response – which is when adrenaline kicks in to help deal with a stressful situation. By leaving the 'fight' mode switched on the body remains clenched, oxygen-deprived and in crisis, which can affect overall health. Just taking a few deep, purposeful breaths can help switch off the response, and make you instantly calm and vibrant.

It's best to gently breathe in and out through your nose, advises breath expert and author of Free Your Breath, Free Your Life Dennis Lewis. "A long, slow exhalation helps harmonise your diaphragm and turns on your relaxation response," she says. "Sense the natural pause after exhalation; let yourself rest there for a moment… [then] let your inhalation arise by itself, when it's ready."

Pick up party platters and more for your next get-together at Foodtown markets. www.FoodTownNY.com

Spend  Time  With  Loved  Ones

What are friends and loved ones for? Well, according to different research, people who have strong “social networks” (as in, loving friends and family members) reap many health benefits.

And, on the flipside, people without strong social bonds tend to fare much worse.

Plus, on a totally non-scientific level: Love and friendship makes everything so much better.

Obviously. So go call your mom or Chat your friend to set up a yoga date. You’ll be glad you did.

Quit  Smoking  or  Never  Start

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Longtime smokers lose about 10 years of their lives to the habit, according to research published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

On the plus side, quitting before 35 can almost entirely eliminate that risk. So the sooner you quit, the longer you’ll live.

Pick up party platters and more for your next get-together at Foodtown markets. www.FoodTownNY.com

Sit  less.  Stand  more

Sitting disease is a thing, for serious. Office workers, looking at you: See if you have the option for a standing desk, or if you can rig your own (check out these six standing desk hacks from Cosmopolitan for some smart ideas).

Otherwise, do what you can to reduce the time you spend sitting each day by about an hour total. If you’re at work sitting for eight hours, that means find a way to stand for seven and a half minutes each hour. Some ideas: Set your phone alarm for every hour, and then do laps around the office when it goes off. Take walking meetings, instead of sitting-at-a-table meetings. Stand up while you take conference calls. Take the stairs. Park in the far-away parking spot. Walk an extra few blocks to grab lunch instead of picking it up at the closest deli… Yeah, you get the idea.

Pick up party platters and more for your next get-together at Foodtown markets. www.FoodTownNY.com

Be  Grateful  

Beyond just making you a happier and more pleasant person to be around, showing gratitude can also enhance long-term well-being, according to research published in the journal Applied Psychology: Health and Wellbeing.

So go ahead: Use that #Blessed hashtag in a non-ironic way.

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