5 things for a healthy lifestyle that cost almost nothing
These are 5 things you can do to improve your lifestyle/work that come at almost zero cost (compared to the benefits they bring)
1. Oil Pulling
As soon as you wake up in the morning, take a spoon of edible oil, preferably coconut oil, put it in your mouth and keep swishing for about 5 minutes. This helps improve gum health, reduce bacteria and thereby bad breath, and healthy jaws.
2. Take a walk in the morning
Take a short walk for at least 5 to 10 minutes in the morning, if possible, alone, without any gadgets on. No music. SImply enjoy the morning light and sounds in the environment. This is your "me-time" of the day. Over a period of time, you can use this time to plan your day, and for some creative critical thinking.
Getting some movements in the morning also helps you feel awake and alert during the day. Getting some sunlight in the morning will help towards this too.
3. Take a cold water shower
This has proved to be very helpful in bringing alertness and also to some extent in weight loss. The shock that you get when the cold water falls on the skin helps in releasing the stress hormones early in the day that will bring alertness.
4. Site quite for at least 10 minutes a day
This is something you can do without any extra cost. Take some time out from a busy day and just close your eyes and sit. Breathe deeply and relax. Tell yourself that there is absolutely nothing else you need to do in that ten minutes of the day. That's your time. Sit and observe all the sensations, sounds and thoughts that fall into your awareness. I use Waking Up app that has helped in getting this time very efficiently.
5. Reserve same place and time for your work
If you are working or studying, it helps to reserve the same place and time to do your work helps in getting into focused mode quickly. You can use the same music which will usually become a white noise and helps in avoiding any other distracting noise. I personally like Lofi Girl or Chillhop Music on YouTube as background music when I need to focus deeply on my work. As there are no decipherable lyrics, the music itself does not become distracting. This is also one of my other favorites. It signals to the brain that "Ah! OK, I know this music. Now we are getting into focus mode."
Let me know what other practices/daily routines that you use that have improved the quality of your life and work.