Healthy Physical & Mental Habits That Have Improved My Life

With each passing year, we are reminded of how we can improve, the endless traits and habits we should start or continue again, and how this will be our year.

As important as it is for us to change and progress for the better, it’s important that we focus on the everyday small acts and changes as they will bring the greatest lasting impact.

Making big, grand, and sometimes unattainable goals and resolutions only leave us feeling defeated and stressed rather than successful and efficient.

In this article, I’ll be going over some healthy physical and mental habits that over time I’ve added into my life that has improved it immensely. They are attainable and manageable, which makes me feel like no matter what my daily list of to-dos is that I’ve accomplished something worthwhile and of value. Therefore, I assure you, if I can do these you can too. 

Physical Habits

1. Daily Morning Yoga and Stretches

Through my childhood to early young adult years, I was heavily involved in musical theatre and dance classes which were rigorous and enjoyable exercises that kept my body fit and happy.

But in the last few years, I haven’t been involved in either of these exercises and have tried to find a new exercise niche to take its place. But no matter what I tried, nothing was intriguing enough for me to see through and I justified for a while that being a young Mom was an exercise in and of itself, which let’s be honest it is, but I still needed something to help my body function well. I knew I needed to move purposefully to do and be all I wanted to effectively. 

That’s when stretching and yoga came to mind. Every morning, I have a 10-minute stretch routine and some additional yoga to help my body wake up, move, and groove into the day, and quite honestly doing that alone has made a huge difference.

I have always had some major cramping in my feet and since making stretching and yoga a regular habit I have noticed that the cramping in my feet has decreased. Plus this wonderful habit makes me feel physically awake, releases tension, has provided a calming effect on my mind and body, and has allowed me to be more able to take on my day, which is a great help being a Mama to an active, curious toddler. 

2. Family Walks & Hikes

After making morning stretching and yoga a regular habit, I knew the next thing that needed to shift was continuing to move, not just on my own but as a family.

Every day, sometimes multiple times in a day, my husband, little boy and I go for a walk as a family either in our neighborhood or to one of the city parks. Plus during the late summer and into the early fall, every other weekend we would drive out of the city to go on a hike or rigorous nature walk if you will, depending on how venturous we felt that day.

Being outdoors and having that active time as a family has been a huge benefit for all of us. Our toddler loves every chance he gets to be outside to not only explore but we can tell he loves being in nature as a family. That quality time does a world of good for his sweet little soul, and I have to admit, it does so much good for mine as well. 

3. Having My Water Bottle Handy

We as human beings do not consume enough water to aid our minds and bodies. Most times when you feel snacky, stop and ask yourself if you are hungry or if it’s your body’s way of saying it needs to be properly hydrated.

We would do well to keep a water bottle on our person to drink not just once, but over and over and over again throughout the day to not only stay hydrated, but to stay healthy, flush out toxins, increase energy, speed up your metabolism, and that’s just a few benefits of many.

I myself have noticed that simply making sure to have a water bottle that goes where I go helps not only to make sure I’m well hydrated, but in turn, helps to boost my energy levels, my complexion is better, and the overall functionality of my body has been much better. 

4. Meal-Planning

I love cooking and baking, especially for my family and others, and it probably stems from coming from a home where I saw the benefits and love first hand.

Growing up we only ever ate out maybe once a month and even then I think I might be exaggerating, and it all started from taking the time to sit and make a plan.

As I have taken on and continued the habit of meal-planning, it has not only helped in the heart that goes behind what I create, but helps me to be mindful about what is going into my family’s body to keep them healthy and happy, but also helps in keeping and maintaining a family budget. 

5. Dancing With My Toddler

Going back to exercise, as I mentioned before, being a parent especially to a toddler is a means of exercise in and of itself. Every parent can attest to this! And boy do I love it, truly.

A habit that has taken no effort but a whole lot of love and sincere quality time between my little boy and I has been putting on some music and dancing around our living room. And I assure you, this happens every day and sometimes multiple times a day.

You would know it’s a habit by seeing the sparkle of absolute delight that comes across my toddler’s eyes when you say “time for music”. He’ll immediately beeline for the CD case or wait for me to choose a playlist on my phone, and the moment the music is chosen and ready, he reaches up for me and his little hand goes directly into my hand to hold onto.

This has not only been a great physical activity that’s been good for my lungs, heart, and body as a whole but has been a great joy and means of bonding with my toddler that we both truly enjoy and look forward to as part of our day. 


Mental Habits

1. Increased Time In Nature

Time in nature is indeed therapeutic and healthy for the mind and body to take part in, and we would all do well to find ourselves in it more often.

Anytime I was in nature this past year I felt like my mental health increased for the better, that I could think clearer, and breathe better.

Being in nature was an essential habit for my mental health and well-being to be more creative, to clear the mental cobwebs, to be happier, and to problem solve more effectively.

I also noticed that my relationships became stronger, especially as I found myself in nature with my husband and toddler. We were able to slow down and mindfully spend less time on our phones and more time face to face and truly present.

2. Reading

I have always had an immense love for reading, but as the years have progressed and become busier, I’ve noticed my screen time increase and my book time decrease which has been alarming to come to terms with.

I made the resolve last year to change this and have mindfully taken the time to read at least one book each month and made sure from when our little boy was born to now as a toddler to read to him multiple times a day.

Taking the time to read has lowered my headaches that I know have been brought on by too much screen time, has made me more aware of life’s possibilities and my ability to do much good in it, has made me more grateful for the people in my life and the world around me, has made my creative juices soar, and honestly has made me happier.

3. Listening to Podcasts

I have a sincere love for learning and a deep interest in people, their stories, and what connects us as human beings.

One way that has become an incredible source of learning has been through podcasts. There are some real gems that I listen to as I write, as I clean, and when I find the occasional downtime, making it so that I learn as I accomplish the task at hand, double win.

Having this regular habit of hearing people discuss, teach, and be open has been informative, insightful, and even therapeutic to me as I have built my business, gone forward in my parenting journey, and enlightened my mind as a creator.

4. Watching Soothing and Informative YouTube Videos

For the past year and a half, YouTube has become my main source of how-tos and upliftment. I have been striving to be far more mindful of not just how much screen time I have but what I allow into my life during that time.

Will, I mindlessly scroll and accomplish nothing, or will I fill that time with active truths, positive energy, and insightful content? The choice is mine of whether I’ll be the master over my tech and social media or it over me, as it is yours.

I took the time to make this mind-shift change and habit by first going through my youtube profile and intentionally deciding what I was and wasn’t going to be subscribed to, mindfully created playlists, and put a timer on my phone for how long I would use the app so that I wouldn’t get lost in the vortex of endless content no matter how good. 

It’s honestly still an ongoing project but it helps in making my time mine again and far more enjoyable as I learn and am enlightened from videos on how to improve my business, how to more effectively parent, watching beautiful, inspiring content created by other incredible creatives, and winding down after a sometimes long and demanding day or week with beautiful music or soothing videos.

5. Quality Time with Loved Ones

I have always been a huge advocate for quality time with family and friends, especially because such relationships truly mean everything to me, and time spent with them is a huge priority in my life.

Since this past year made it difficult to gather regularly, physically, or at all period, my extroverted nature knew that if I didn’t find some means of problem-solving the situation at hand that I would suffer greatly.

Therefore, I made the immediate resolve to FaceTime family members at least a couple of times a week, I weekly sent Facebook messages and texts to friends, sent cards and letters to other loved ones at least once a month, and every time someone specifically came to mind, I made the choice to immediately let them know that I was thinking of them and that I loved them.

Taking the time to express love and initiate forms of connection became a habit out of sincere love, empathy, and sincere concern to make sure during a time of heartache and uncertainty that others knew they were not forgotten or alone, but that they were loved and known. In turn, it cradled my own mental health hardships and made my own questioning, aching heart feel whole.

6. Quality Time with Myself

It may almost seem odd and even funny that after talking about the habit and need for quality time with others that I would follow it up with quality time with myself.

Now as much as I am an extrovert, I lovingly refer to myself as an extroverted introvert. I love being with people and taking in human interactions, but I whole-heartedly cherish this time to myself. To shut out the noise of the world’s happenings and take the time to sit and be with me.

I think far too often that we allow meetings, engagements, the pings and rings of our phones, and entertainment overload to cloud us from truly listening to, getting to know, and caring for ourselves. I’m talking about the importance and essential need to take care of yourself and to slow down. Again, self-care and slowing down isn’t a mere trend but a need and should be treated as such.

As we are instructed before we fly on an airplane, in case of an emergency, when the air masks drop we must first put one on ourselves before assisting anyone. Therefore, if in our day-to-day lives we don’t make it a regular habit to take quality time for ourselves how can we possibly serve and care for others and fulfill our responsibilities?

I made a more conscious effort to read, to write or indulge in other creative outlets, to listen to music even if it was the same song over and over again, to watch a movie that I truly loved, to sometimes simply light a couple of candles, pause, and focus on my breathing, or to go for a drive or a walk on my own to let my brain unwind, to pass by places I loved and sometimes even treating myself by picking up a delightful beverage or loaf of pumpkin bread all because it brought a much-needed smile across my face and allowed me to find reasons to rejoice and celebrate my life and myself, not in a selfish, “greater than thou” manner but in a sincere, meaningful way. And we deserve that!

We deserve to take moments to do what we love, to celebrate what was, is, and can be, and take a moment to breathe in and breathe out, and appreciate where we are, who we are, and that we have the ability to rest and then move forward well.

Making this a habit will lessen burn out, bring increased peace and lower stress levels, and allow us to truly appreciate ourselves. 

Creating Meaningful Habits For Yourself

Now with a new year comes every possible article, video, and ad telling you about what changes we need to make to be better, healthier, prettier, and happier. But knowledge and hopes and dreams alone do not create change, only consistent behavior and a sincere desire to start can do this.

Take the time to tune into yourself and ask yourself what you want or is most important to you, what needs to change, and recognizing what will make your life healthier and happier, physically and mentally. How do you want your life to feel and become like?

As you create this for yourself, write out a simple step by step action plans that are attainable for you, put this somewhere where you’ll see it often, and start with what you can do at this moment to get started.

I hope that as you take action to create and act upon healthy physical and mental habits this year that you’ll be able to see it through well, that you will be driven, and if you fall off the bandwagon for a bit, don’t give up altogether, but give yourself some grace, make changes where needed, and get back at it again. Make your life spectacular and enjoy the ride. You got this!


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About the Author 

Hi there! I’m Stephanie Tracy, a freelance writer, and blogger for hire. I specialize in physical and mental health, parenting, and self-development. I create engaging, inspiring and useful content to help businesses progress in making their viewers into customers. When I’m not writing, you can find me happily playing with my toddler, walking in the park with my family, or indulging in a movie marathon with my husband.