Want a few easy fixes for feeling better?  Hint:  we all know what we should be doing, so let me give you a few reminders on exactly why these simple habit changers are so important.

Sleep

If you are like me, you are sleep deprived!  I’m up too late at night, and up too early in the morning.  I know all too well that lack of good sleep creates a cranky person (and I think my family can attest to that as well!).

You can’t live a better life if you are tired and grumpy.  You will experience frustration more quickly than usual, make mistakes, and feel like the hours are dragging.  When you can’t wait to put your head back on the pillow, no matter what time of day, chances are you are not getting enough sleep.

Being tired causes headaches and other aches and pains.  Your body is not able to function at its highest level because of fatigue.  I have no problem falling asleep now but for many years, I did.  I finally had a sleep study done that revealed there was a reason why I never felt fully rested.  When I resolved the problem and started sleeping all the way through the night, I saw an amazing transformation in how I felt.  I was able to get more done and still feel energetic as long as I allotted myself enough hours of sleep each night.

How many hours are necessary?  Well, that is different for every person.  Some can function perfectly well on 5 or 6, while some need a full 8!  Figure out your optimal sleep pattern and then make several good hours of sleep a night a priority. Better sleep equals better health!

Breaks

From the minute I wake until I go to bed at night I am on the go.  Work, teaching karate, updating social media, writing blogs, and family obligations, and the list goes on.  There is no lack of things that need to get done.  I’m an efficient person who enjoys being productive; but on the other hand, burn-out is on my heels if I don’t occasionally find a few moments of respite.

I have an hour drive to work and back each day.  Some people say I should be proficient in another language by now, and I guess that’s true.  While I normally just listened to music, I changed it up by making the long drive a bit of a break.  Now, after listening to some upbeat music to start the day and get me going, I turn it down and take a few moments to just quietly reflect, followed by a few moments of being appreciative about something or someone.  Before I know it, I’ve forgotten some of the stresses on my mind and feel a little more like I am ready to conquer the world.

When in your day can you find a five minute break?  Driving to work or waiting in line to pick the kids up from school?  Sitting at the doctor’s office?  On your lunch break? Maybe you are a student and can pluck a half an hour break between classes to enjoy a quiet breeze outside, or leave your office building for a few moments to see a change of scenery.  Right now, reading this, you are doing something for yourself.  Whenever you can, close your eyes and clear your mind.  If I am rushing around and don’t take a break, I feel the stress starting to pile on.  A little peace of mind, even just five minutes, makes my next task seem less monumental.

Water

What does water have to do with living a better life?

Our bodies need nourishment and hydration.  It’s not really a choice, it’s a requirement.   I’m guilty of the caffeine fix, sipping coffee throughout the entire morning and neglecting my water intake.  But, when you take into consideration all the activities of your day, and the probability that you are not eating healthy all the time, water is a quick and convenient nourishing source that can give you a boost.

What’s so great about water?  When you are dehydrated, your body and mind are stressed.  Because the brain is mostly water, it only makes sense that keeping well hydrated will help you think, focus, and concentrate better.  If your work out, drinking water is essential to replenishing the fluids that are diminished.  Drink enough before your work outs and you will notice a big difference. When I skip the recommended number of  glasses, I drag!

Water is also touted as a way to clean out toxins, help lose weight, fight ailments, and make our complexions better. Where else can you get such big benefits from such a small change?

It’s such an easy fix to living better you could call it a no-brainer!

 Exercise/Sports

No blog of mine will ever be written without a plug for martial arts.  You may pick any exercise to help eliminate stress, lose weight, and get in shape; but none offers the benefits of exercising the body and the mind as much as the arts.

Learning martial arts is like learning a language.  At first, you just practice the skills over and over.  Repeat, repeat, just as you do for new language skills.  Soon, though, you begin to learn more about yourself.  You start to ask questions about what you are doing and why.  You introspect about how your learning has a direct bearing on your behavior, your personality, and your life.  You recognize that you are strengthening not just your body, but your mind and spirit as well.

No other sport accommodates the mindfulness of karate or other martial arts.   A quarterback in football must remember many plays; a soccer player must understand how to move the ball from one end of the field to the next; baseball players need to know concepts and hand signals; and hockey players need to skate like they are running and strategically score a goal with the puck, but none of these sports includes a balance of body and mind. They are difficult and time consuming sports to learn, demand a lot of rigorous training, and even help build self-confidence and team building, but they lack the added benefit of spirituality and continual personal growth that the martial arts offer.

Let me caveat all this by concluding that no matter your choice, any form of physical activity will benefit you in many ways. From getting fit, to relieving stress and feeling better about yourself, exercise is a must if you want to live a better life.

If you are not exercising, you are missing a key perk that fits perfectly in the door to excellent health.

Smile

Smiling promotes happiness.  Someone walked in my office the other morning and I was smiling.  He said to my co-worker, I like coming in here.  She’s always smiling.

When I’m upset, it’s easy to see.  I wear my emotions on my sleeve.  I don’t want to appear sad, distraught, or negative to my family, friends, and co-workers.  Even if I am feeling that way, smiling has a way of turning it upside down. I know that  smiling actually washes some of that away and makes a difference in how I feel and how others see me.  So, I make the effort to smile.

If people make comments or ask why you are sad or upset yet you don’t feel either of those things, then you have forgotten how to smile.  They care how you are feeling if they stop long enough to ask if something is wrong, so don’t be upset if they ask.   Don’t pretend that they are wrong or don’t know what they are talking about.

If you start wondering why you don’t look happy to others, it might be time to re-evaluate why you’re not smiling. If you want them to see the happy person that you believe yourself to be, then let the smiles start.  Raising the corners of your mouth will raise your spirits and theirs.

If you need some help in the happy category and are not sure where to find your happy anymore, check out my article, Finding Happy: http://www.themartialartswoman.com/finding-happy/

Chill Out

I’m not talking about diving into a refreshing pool or downing a frozen marguerita on a summer day.  What I am talking about is relaxing some of your stringent self-imposed life rules.

Striving for 100% is great.  Doing your best, making change happen, and trying to work things out is exactly the right way to be.  These are good approaches to real life!  Because you are a human being, though, you will not get everything right all the time.  Don’t beat yourself up over it.  Grieve for a few minutes, reflect on how you can do better, and move on.

Is your perfection the same as everyone else’s?  Probably not.  Whatever it is for which you are striving may not exist, since perfection is uniquely hand-picked by each individual.  If you think performing a task can only be done one way or that making a mistake turns you into a horrible person, then you may be setting some unrealistic expectations.  Unrealistic goals make you even more uptight because they can be impossible to achieve and you don’t want to feel like a failure.

Relax some of your uptight perfectionism.  Do your friends really care that you wash your floor every day and it is so clean you can eat off it; or that you worked out seven times this week?  Does it really matter to them that your hair is cut every 4.5 weeks or that you feel compelled to write so many blogs per week?  If you miss one of your superimposed rules, is it the end of the world?

These things are important to you, but they are not in any way a definition of perfectionism.

Trying to be the best is something for which we should all strive.  Don’t judge others or compromise the spontaneity of life, however, with self created rules that you falsely believe are perfect.

I say, embrace who you are, including your flaws.  To be imperfect is not a bad thing.  If you fear that your imperfections will affect your success in life, listen to what Winston Churchill had to say:

“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.”

Now that you have been reminded of six very simple strategies for living better, when will you get started?  I think beginning tomorrow I’m going to make sure I drink more water and sleep a little more.  What about you?

Pick your favorite and give it a go.  Nothing extreme is necessary.  You don’t need to start gulping down water, exercising, smiling, and finding time to take a break all right this minute.  If you start to notice that something in your life doesn’t feel quite right, chances are one of these six strategies needs to be put in motion.

Don’t do it because you have to.  Do it because you deserve to live your best life each and every day.

Winning at Life is what it’s all about.