Before we dive into the 10 Health Facts, there are two things I would like to highlight..

☝️ Being healthy is not about being skinny

✌️ Health = encompasses well-being of your body, mind, and spirit.

If we don’t get that in our head, we will always be focusing on calories, obsessing over what we eat every meal, and feeling guilty all the time. I hope these 10 healthy facts will give you a little insight into what health is about, and of course debunking some myths at the same time!

Get these questions answered:

“What is the best way to stay healthy?”

”How do you keep your body healthy?”

“What do you need to do to be healthy?”

“How can I be more healthy?”

 

Here we go..

 

Health Fact #1: It’s okay to eat cake, have pizzas, and munch on chips!

Yes, it IS OKAY! Stop dieting, and start living life.

My take is when there are restrictions, there’s bound to be suppression, and unhappiness. I personally find the 80:20 rule has helped me tremendously in my relationship with food, and definitely has been my key to eating well. I try to cook most of the time, but on days when I’m out, I’ll l just order whatever I fancy in the menu. And if I feel like a slice of cake after meal, I will have it. And, no guilt after!

No matter how much weight you lose, you will not truly feel happy if you are limiting yourself everyday. Live a little, it’s good for your soul, and your body, long term!

Health Fact #2: It’s okay to not have a gym membership.

Live an active lifestyle. Choose to walk instead of drive, choose to climb the stairs instead of getting into the elevator, choose to do your own house work instead of getting a helper, choose outdoor activities to do with your friends instead of another makan session. It’s not true that you need to go to the gym 5 times a week. As long as you are not living a sedentary lifestyle, you’re good 😆

Health Fact #3: You don’t have to workout for 30 minutes or more to get lean

Where some might prefer to incorporate bits of activities into their day to day to stay active, others might find that’s almost impossible for them and they might even prefer to committing to gym days. Do what works best for you, your personality and your lifestyle. But, also do keep in mind that working out in a gym can be quick yet effective. It does not really have to be an hour long. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) may be a buzz/trend right now, but it is one you might want to take note of.

And the best thing is, you can incorporate HIIT into any of your favourite cardio. I don’t know about you guys, but 30 minutes of steady jog or running on a treadmill always seems boring to me. By changing up my routine to doing 40 secs on sprint, and 20 secs rest on the treadmill, time just flies! Before I know it, I’m done and feeling great! Also, just a little “backed-by-science” facts, according to this article by Dr. Josh Axe, HIIT has been studied to:

• Improve cardiovascular health
• Burn fat
• Build lean muscle mass

Health Fact #4: Breakfast is not the most important meal

If you’re one of those who just do not feel hungry in the morning, or can make do without breakfast, just go ahead with skipping it. Eating breakfast is not a “must” to be healthy. If it does not affect your energy level, it shouldn’t matter. In fact, if you learn about intermittent fasting, there are some amazing benefits to breaking fast at a later time of the day instead of early morning. Take some time to watch the video to know how skipping breakfast will not put you into ‘starvation mode’.

Health Fact #5: You need to spend some quiet time

A little health fact that’s not “body” related for ya 😉  Many people tend to miss the importance of quiet time. It can mean many different things to different people - journalling, reading, spending time with God, immersing yourself in nature, just sitting in silence, etc.. Quiet time is important because that is a time where you spend with yourself, reflect on your thoughts and actions and be rejuvenated. We can sometimes be so “busy” doing things, that we miss the point in life. And to me, that’s one of the key health elements - being well in your mind and spirit.

I know this might all sound a little strange to some of you, but if you find yourself being clouded by voices in your head, do give this a try.

Health Fact #6: Drink your lemon water with straw

Everyone knows drinking lemon water is alkalizing and aids your body with detoxification.

Now, this doesn’t mean you’ve got to stay away from lemon water (we definitely do not want to miss out on the benefits it offers), we just got to find a way around it. So drinking with straw is one solution; it reduces the contact it has with your teeth. And most importantly, wait 30 minutes or more before you brush your teeth after sipping lemon water. The combination of acid and abrasive brushing action will only damage it further.

Health Fact #7: Eating 5 small meals isn’t necessarily good for you  

This is when the phrase “no one size fits all” applies perfectly. You can eat 3 big meals, 5 small meals, 8 mini meals - there’s no “healthy” number of meals you should eat in a day. Some may need 3 big meals to feel satiated and avoid craving and snacking throughout the day, and others may need 5 small meals to give them the satisfaction they need from food. Some may feel 5 small meals leave them feeling like they did not really “eat” at all leading them unsatisfied, others may feel happy that they get to eat more times in a day.

I learn that it really is an experiment when it comes to finding your own rhythm with food, and health. because things works differently for every individual because we are all unique!

Take it on board, try it and change it up if it doesn’t work for you.

Health Fact #8: Ignore nutrition label, check out ingredient list instead

I know ignoring something with the word nutrition when I’m referring to health facts here seem a bit counterintuitive. Ok, maybe saying “ignoring” is going a bit too far. 😆  

But it is partly true, just looking at how much calories, fat, carbohydrates, and sugar do not really tell you enough and definitely do not indicate whether it’s good for you or otherwise.”

Ingredient list on the other hand, tells you if you want them in your body or not. Chemicals 🙅, wholesome real food 🙋  It is as simple as that. And ingredient list is also listed in descending order by weight, so that’s a good indication of what makes the bulk of the item.

Health Fact #9: Don’t overindulge in healthy food

I think this comes back to “moderation is key”. I used to think if something is healthy for me, I can have more of it. And that leads to overeating. Any form of overeating is bad, even healthy food. Just like how any form of obsession is bad, even towards good things!

Just because something is natural do not mean we have a free pass with it. An easy example, fruits. Fruits are loaded with vitamins and fiber, and most fruits are also high in fructose. Overeating fruits can affect our blood sugar level just like how refined sugar could too! I’m not saying they are the same and refined sugar (or refined anything) most definitely do not give you the same benefits as fruits, but the effect on blood sugar level is a concern!

Health Fact #10: No amount of money, status and recognition can give you success in life

If money, status and recognition is all there is to success, it has most definitely given the word much less weight than it has. So if that word has such minimal weight, is it even important then at the end of the day?

So...what is success to you? What is your aim or purpose? I know we have been taught to think money, recognition and status are measures of successes but are they really?

Figuring out life and your purpose in life is pretty vital to your mental, emotional, and psychological health. So I figured this ought to be included in our top 10 healthy facts today.

 

There you have it, our 10 Health Facts Nobody Tells You! I hope these facts will encourage you to give more thought to what you view as healthy and not healthy, and also inspire you to question the “popular health ideas” that are being thrown around and find out for yourself if they are really what they claim to be. 😉

Do you guys know of any health facts that are out of the “norm” but so true and understated? Do #share ❤️

Lots of love,

Erina