"the things I do and mindset-hacks I use every single day to: help me stay on track with drinking enough water, eating healthily (& intuitively), practicing good sleep-hygiene, and mindful media intake"
The small things add up to the big things,
especially over a long period of time!
While I may have romanticized the live-fast die-young (bad girls do it well, ayy) attitude a little too hard in my late-teens/early twenties, I quickly realized there is just way to much to do, see, and live for than could possibly be accomplished in even one full lifetime. What really changed was I grew out of the party lifestyle and I am now much too curious to see things over the passage of time like: how the world will change? how will society change? how deep can I get to know my friends and family? how many new things can I experience and how many things that I enjoy can I get better at??
The point is, I'm tryna live. and living (imo) requires purpose and intent. It's very hard to be mindful when we're bumping around all day just reacting off our impulses. If that's your preference, that's fine too! This is to help anyone who isn't sure where to start in the "mindfulness" practice. These micro-habits have helped me personally achieve goals and feel more at peace with myself.
***REMINDER: my health/wellness journey started very early (end of college), when I was diagnosed with a BRCA+ gene mutation that makes me (much) more susceptible to breast/ovarian cancer. I'm not saying this is how everyone needs to live their lives. These are just mindful habits I've developed over years of researching and practicing what feels best with MY body. I started with 1. Just 1! and the list has grown over time. So, even if only 1 sticks in your head, that's a great start!!
Here are the things I do and mindset-hacks I use every single day to: help me stay on track with drinking enough water, eating healthily (& intuitively), practicing good sleep-hygiene, and mindful media intake.
D R I N K - E N O U G H - W A T E R
-drink minimum 500ml (a regular sized water-bottle) of water between waking up and eating breakfast
-keep a (refillable) liter-size water bottle on/near you at all times, if it's near you, you'll drink it (also a good tip for traveling)
-try to only refill that liter bottle when empty (helps you to keep track of intake), I drink ~3L a day
-jazz it up! add fruits/veggies (raspberries, mint, lemon, cucumber, anything!) for flavoring if you're getting bored, or put it in a fancier cup
-switch it up! if you're getting bored! herbal teas of all flavors (some of my favorites are vanilla chamomile, lemon ginger turmeric, anything with licorice root) and there are so many sparkling water flavors/brands now, just watch out for sugar/sodium !
-add sipping to your routine
for ex: while running errands - take a pause at each location to drink water (I consider this part of getting ready to get out of the car and getting ready to drive: start car, get music/gps set up, drink water) OR at work - while going to the bathroom, in between calls/emails
-drink water 20-30 mins before a meal, while cooking, or while waiting for food to arrive are good trigger times to consciously drink
-go to bed with a full glass of water so you can sip while winding down & again first thing in the morning
click here to see how much water you should be drinking by body weight! (this is just the simplest one I could find that doesn't have a body-shamey website name or require an email)
H E A L T H Y - E A T I N G
-helpful thought for cravings: you can always eat whatever you want AFTER you satisfy your body's nutrient needs. Pack in the nutrients, and you'll likely realize you didn't even want what you thought you did! (and if you do still, go for it!) This has helped me immensely with intuitive-eating.
**NOTE: I am not using this to avoid CALORIC intake. I eat A LOT. and I eat whatever I want. I do this to make sure nutrients are valued and consumed BEFORE I pack my body with lesser-value foods like fast-food, junk-food, processed foods. For example, eating an oat or a smoothie bowl first, if I think I'm craving an Impossible breakfast sandwich from Starbucks. This has helped me become better at realizing what my body needs and when/ and what is an unhelpful craving.
-wake up hungry? you're more likely dehydrated, chug some water before eating the first thing you crave!
-try to add as many colors to a meal as possible
-think of whole-food plant diversity while cooking
-prep foods/sauces that take longer for quick diversity in meals
for example: cook or mix a batch of quinoa/beans/brown rice/avocado crema/peanut satay sauce any time during your week and store in the fridge to add-on to whatever you cook later
also: soak oats + chia in a jar for quicker breakfasts! (add fruits & now you also have a raw meal)
-keep in mind easy to add ingredients for final-touches & garnishing
my most common: seeds (chia, sesame, flax), nuts (peanut, almond, cashew, walnut), flavor enhancers (nutritional yeast, cacao nibs, coconut flakes), and garnishes (green onion, cilantro, pickled veggies)
-many ingredients will already have sugars & sodium, check the label and hold on adding these bc they can quickly add up, and this is why I also buy unsweetened/low sodiums items where possible (like mylks, drinks, anything canned
-find what substitutions make little difference to you and do those where possible!
for example: i hate wheat pasta, I actually love red-lentil pasta, and I will never compromise on some white pastas like angel-hair, gnocci, & radiatori! So, I save those for a more indulgent night and use lentil-pasta when I'm focused on diversity and need a quick(er) meal.
also: sushi rice! I detest brown rice on sushi, but I love it in my veggie bowls and on tacos!
S L E E P - H Y G I E N E
-set phone down-time limits (mine are 7:00pm - 8:00am)
on Iphone: settings>screen time>downtime *this one will block out your apps, OR settings>do not disturb *this one silences calls and notifications
if you're worried about emergency calls, there are settings within Downtime and Do Not Disturb that you can change to allow certain people or two-calls in a row to come through
-rising/sleeping with the sun is of course ideal, but if your schedule doesn't allow it:
-lighting! get a lamp or different light sources that can be adjusted and dimmed after the sun goes down
my favorite is a dimming salt lamp, but I have so many different light sources that are dimming as I'm dimming
-(if possible) watch movies/shows on a couch/ in another room. I try to do as little screen time activities in the bed/bedroom. You might be surprised how well it works to have separate spaces so your mind can process them differently.
-follow a routine (as best you can. For me, once I shower, do nighttime skin care, change into sleep clothes, and dim lights along the way, even if I wasn't tired, my body will follow suit).
-try to practice "putting yourself to bed" rather than falling asleep while watching something in bed/in another room
-better options than scrolling a bright screen in your face when you can't sleep:
put on a Spotify 'bedtime story' (using your imagination to listen can calm your mind)
play super relaxing music (spa sounds can work)
use Relax Melodies app for free white noise sounds (you can create your own mix of sounds)
read/ play an audio-book
if you must use a screen, sometimes it's all you got -- play something you find relaxing. My go-to's are anything narrated by David Attenborough (Planet Earth shows) or makeup tutorials on youtube (I find one with no talking - watching makeup application is just super relaxing to me)
M E D I A - I N T A K E - H Y G I E N E
-a tv has never and will never exist in my bedroom (& preferably not in the house at all, I don't like cable tv, loud long annoying commercials, sports, all that jazz... sry not)
-follow only people/accounts who inspire, uplift, and share real trials/tribulations (even if there is someone that has good messaging but for some reason you feel worse after seeing their content, that's an unfollow!)
-have a reason for consumption, are you trying to learn? to calm? to entertain? to hype up?
-choose the media you want to consume (have intent) rather than letting the algorithms feed you whatever is 'up-next'
-be aware of "mindless-scroll-brain". it happens to all of us, I can feel the ability to entertain my brain get smaller and smaller. I laugh less, I get higher standards for what I like, all within just 30-40 mins of scrolling. I start to feel dreamy/foggy. I'll even get a headache. It's easier to avoid something you can recognize. I have a feeling we'll be seeing studies about 'scroll-brain' soon (not to be confused with 'doom-scroll', the attachment to the bad-news cycle).
-media very easily takes time away from us, just having a general awareness if this is how you do want to be spending your time is important. Sometimes, yes!! I do! but many times... no, I really don't.
-setting 'down-time' on your phone also helps get rid of the morning/night mindless scroll
So in the end, what really is the point? We are so BOMBARDED with stimuli that is abnormal to human function and development. We've gotten so removed from what is natural to our bodies. Am I going to go full Into-the-Wild mode... no. I don't want to live outside in the woods. It's cold and scratchy out there. I want my fleecy clothes, and my fleecy blanket, and my temperature controlled food, and my bubbly water in a 1920's champagne glass. The point is that we live in a day and age where many choices are defaulted for us, but they are so so harmful to our bodies and our sanity.
As with everything, take pause before, during, and after and mentally note -- how do I feel? Is this something that improves or impairs my experience? Is it something I want to implement regularly? Does this particular thing HELP or HURT me? Does this particular thing get me CLOSER to or FARTHER from my goals?
We don't have to choose. The default experience is there if we prefer not to choose. The magic of the human experience is that we GET TO CHOOSE. and why do we even want to? Because there is power in the choice. Because it feels good to give your body what it truly needs. Because life is so much more fulfilling and rewarding when we are in control (as best we can be!) of how we feel when it happens to us.
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