3 Healthy Habits I’ve Recently Adopted That Also Save Me Money
I hope that you are staying happy and positive during this crazy time. People are getting laid off, children are having to complete school from home, and millions of graduates are graduating into a tough job market. The coronavirus epidemic has created an emotionally and financially draining time.
I’m one of the lucky ones. I’m thankful that I have been working from home for almost three months, my spouse still has his job, and none of my family or friends have been directly affected by COVID-19 so far. I feel that it’s important to be self aware during a time like this.
While I’ve been spending so much more time at home, I’ve been able to start three new and healthy habits recently that I wanted to share with you and you might find helpful to integrate into your own life. These habits have helped me stay positive, be healthier and more mindful of my actions.
Intermittent Fasting
I am hypoglycemic, which means that I have low blood sugar. For about ten years, after passing out a few times due to a sudden drop in my blood sugar, I’ve been adamant about eating every two to three hours. I was afraid of my blood sugar suddenly dropping while I was commuting home from work or any other time that I was out of the house.
I had heard about intermittent fasting, which is defined by Healthline as “an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating…Common intermittent fasting methods involve daily 16-hour fasts or fasting for 24 hours, twice per week”. I chose to go with the method 16/8 method that calls for 16-hours of fasting and eating within an 8-hour window. I chose to try intermittent fasting because of it’s reported benefits of weight loss, reducing inflammation, and creating a more thoughtful method of me eating. I found myself eating irregular amounts of food at irregular times out of boredom and decided that since I was already home, it wouldn’t hurt to try and see if it would benefit me.
I’ve been doing it for 1-week so far and feel less bloated, more alert in the morning, and feel more aware of what I’m eating instead of mindlessly snacking. My daily eating schedule now looks a like this.
7 am Water and Coffee
10 am Breakfast
1:30-2 pm Lunch
5 pm Dinner
6 pm Water and some fruit if still hungry
I hope to be able to see some muscle gain, weight loss and continued health benefits as I continue to follow intermittent fasting and will keep you updated!
Increased Time Outside in the Sun
Although I am currently under Shelter in Place, I am making an effort to spend at least two hours each day outside either walking or on my balcony. I’m a person that loves sunshine and fresh air and was noticing that when I didn’t sit outside to get some vitamin d, I was feeling lethargic and not my usual happy self.
I’m very lucky to have a patio attached to my 1-bedroom apartment that allows me to safely stay outside while keeping distance from others. I am slowly adding patio furniture and plants to the once empty patio to make it feel like an extended living room. I’m also experimenting with working a few hours outside in the afternoon. Working in the sunshine, hearing birds, and the sound of my neighbor’s dogs outside helps me feel more “normal” and keeps my stress levels low. Even when I was working out of my office in South Market in San Francisco, I would always block out 30-60 minutes each day to walk around Salesforce Park or Verba Buena Park. Spending time outside helps me stay calm, collected, and improves my mood.
Saying No to Impulse Buys & Sales
This is something that I’m usually pretty good at doing. But during the first few weeks of Shelter in Place, I found myself more susceptible to the barrage of ads that I was looking at. My self control that used to be so strong was slowly crumbling as I found myself at home, feeling stressed out about the coronavirus, and worst of all BORED.
In the past few weeks I bought a few items for self care (face cream, shampoo, conditioner) and a TUSHY (a bidet attachment for your toilet) as well as a few bottles of wine here and there. However, I noticed an uptick in ads on Instagram for amazing “sales” for 50, 60 or even 70% off. I decided to window shop for fun and even found a few items that I wanted for my birthday coming up in June.
Then, suddenly I wokeup and realized that advertisers were getting the best of me. I didn’t need a new pair of shoes because I barely go anywhere anymore and have enough pairs of shoes. I don’t need a new, cute purse made by an artisan in New York City just because I love the colors and the company’s mission. Whenever I leave the house, I’m able to just take my phone with me which carries my ID and debit card on it. Why did I even want a purse?
I’m learning again to know that I have enough. I’m content. I don’t need anything else to increase my happiness. This has helped me practice being content with what I already have, but it’s also helped me eliminate these impulse purchases that lead people to fall into lifestyle inflation and mindless consumption. Buying what I don’t need will only hinder my journey to being debt free and ultimately reaching early retirement.
