Living longer. The purpose of my life is to be healthier, so I can live longer. I want both my brain and my body to maintain its functions for years, therefore I can enjoy every single moment of my life.
Anyone who wants to live longer must realize that relying solely on exercising is not enough to maintain good body. To increase expectancy of our lives, we also need to pay attention to a balanced diet and proper eating habits. Japanese cuisine is the healthiest in the world because it abounds in fish, seafood and vegetables; small portions are consumed slow and fat is scarce. The Japanese live an average of 83 years which is14 years longer than the average life expectancy in the world. On the other hand, people in Africa have the shortest life expectancy, mainly due to poor eating habits, lack of nutritious food and diseases.
Many of the major diseases affecting humanity nowadays are caused by smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise, alcohol and stress. That is why, over the last couple of years, I managed to eliminate unhealthy eating habits which may negatively affect the length of my life. And, this is how I did it.
What I do to live longer?
Do not smoke cigarettes, do not drink alcohol. I used to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day for a few years, when I was in my early twenties, because I was irresponsible. Today, I am totally not proud of it. In fact, I am angry at myself for killing my body slowly. I could not run or walk for more than a few minutes without getting extremely tired. But, I decided to quit smoking as it was nothing else but poisoning my body and voluntarily shortening my life. I was facing slow death about tobacco companies never had told me about. I do not drink alcohol either. Alcohol is nothing more but empty calories, kills my body cells and prevents from thinking rationally.
Eat healthy food. I eat a lot of fruits every day. There is nothing healthier than a serving of fresh fruit for breakfast. Fruits contain a lot of vitamins, kill the thirst, and most importantly, do not contain a gram of fat. I like tropical fruits the most such as coconuts, starfruits, lychees or jackfruits. I also eat widely available fruits, for example, bananas, oranges, apples, pomelos, watermelons or strawberries. I eat a lot of vegetables too. You can find green vegetables in every store – just buy, cook and eat them. It is so simple. Bok choy and spinach are my favorite green veggies. I try to eat more fish such as salmon and tuna, as well as seafood than red meat. Nuts are a great snack that I eat instead of unhealthy potato chips, chocolate bars or cookies. If you do not have enough money to buy nuts, eat less meat. I am not a big fan of dried fruits though. Here is a list of products I eat.
Eat in a healthy way. For breakfast, I usually have scrambled eggs, an omelet with vegetables, probiotic yoghurt, oatmeal with nuts or fresh fruits. When I wake up, I never drink cold drinks on an empty stomach. Instead, I have a glass of warm water with a chunk of lime or lemon. Every time for lunch, I try to have three colors on the plate – whole grains, vegetables and meat. For dinner, I try to eat more steamed vegetables instead of fried. Steamed vegetables are healthier – do not lose minerals when being cooked, oil is not necessary for preparation, can retain all nutritional value without losing flavor. I do not eat fruits in the evening because of the risk of not being digested until morning. Here is a list of products I do not eat. I also try to eat slower.
Do not eat unhealthy products. I do not eat fast food that often. I even gave up eating my homemade burgers when I stopped eating white bread. I do not drink soft drinks keeping myself and my family away from carbonated soft drinks which have neither nutritional value nor vitamins. One cup of a soft drink is a sugar bomb for my body. I also do not drink any energy drinks (I make my own ones with ginger and lemon) or juices from cardboard containers (I squeeze or blend my own fresh juice). Instead, I drink a lot of pure water. There is nothing more necessary for the body than pure water. I also limited meat consumption. Instead of eating three beef steaks for dinner, I eat only one, and add more vegetables. I am not a vegetarian or vegan though.
Exercise, live actively. I exercise regularly. Lack of exercise is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, cancers, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I used to work out in the gym twice or three times a week, but now I run and do some strength training at home. I usually go out to run in the woods to experience something different than running inside my compound that is quite boring. I know that by doing a bit sports every day, I get healthier. Exercising is great for losing weight, or to simply feel good.
Try to stay positive, reduce stress. This is one of the biggest things I have been trying to improve for a long time. Over the years I was able to start eating healthy food, quit smoking, give up drinking alcohol, stop eating fast food. All of these were a piece of cake. But being less stressed in everyday life still gives me headaches, and anxiety. And I know that reducing stress is super important because stress is a risk factor for heart disease and high blood pressure, which is itself a risk factor for stroke. To combat stress, I simplified my workday, established morning routine, practice hurry-free mornings, started exercising and try to stay positive every single minute. I am aware that I do not live a 100% healthy life. I often buy meat of unknown origin and quality in the supermarkets, eat breakfast later than I should, eat few vegetable soups, eat deep fried vegetables when eating out. But I try to improve every day, slowly.
Do not look for excuses to start changing your eating habits. My methods are quite simple, and do not require you to spend any extra money on fancy kitchen equipment or expensive ingredients. While many corporations will try to persuade you, through manipulative advertising, to choose unhealthy things like too much fast food or sugary snacks, nobody has that much power to actually put those unhealthy things in your mouth.
Of course, there are some things that we cannot control, for example, age, family history and health. But we can basically control everything else. That is why, I believe that it is mainly up to us how long we are going to live. I wish to live longer.
And you?
