7 Habits of Highly Healthy People

7 Things About Things

      Baby boomers like myself remember the perennial bestseller “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” as the consummate self help guide and author Dr.Steven Covey as the lifestyle guru extraordinaire.  It spawned a plethora of sound alike and look alike tomes that all were based on 7 “somethings.” (7 rules, 7 guides, 7 pillars, 7 elevens, etc)  I always wondered what was so special about 7 other than it sounded better than 16 Habits of Very Tired People, but from numerology to the Bible, 7 seemed to have a mystical book selling ability, so, in honor of 7, I humbly present the 7 Habits of Highly Healthy People. (To be distinguished from Snoop Dog’s autobiography, The 7 Habits of the High and Healthy People.)

1) They eat moderately and modestly.

There is no magic food!  Eating kale and bean sprouts all day will make you boring and rabbit like.  Eat a balance of protein, fat, and carbohydrates.  It really is that simple.  Many studies suggest that lowering the simple sugars and high glycemic carbohydrates (Google it!) will help you lose weight and maintain that loss.  Going to extremes in your diet is unhealthy, expensive, and will give you bad breath.  Also, eat fewer calories.  If you like steak, eat steak…but don’t put two pounds of butter on your potato and keep the dessert under wraps.  If you have your own private table at Dairy Queen, you need to cut back.

2)  They are active.

You don’t have to run a marathon to be healthy.  You don’t even have to run at all (I can’t believe I just said that!) You just have to get up off the “Couch of Doom” and move.  You are designed to be in motion, all your muscles and bones are crying out to be pampered.  A brisk walk or a Zumba class in ridiculous spandex will add years to your life if it is consistently practiced, and, more importantly, your children will be able to make fun of you later when they see your pictures.

3)  They laugh at themselves.

This one is easy for me as my daughters continually provide reasons for me to laugh at myself.  They are quick to point out I am not as cool as I think I am, which should be obvious as I am still using coolness as a human trait. Taking yourself and your horrible, stress filled life too seriously leads to physical and emotional stagnation.  That doesn’t mean that a laissez faire attitude at all times is optimal, but lighten up to add years to your plight.  Who knows…things could get better.

4)  They join stuff.

Dan Buettner famously pointed out in his inspiring book on longevity, The Blue Zones, that people who live the longest tend to be social animals.  They participate, whether it’s social clubs, scooter races, jello wrestling, or nude skydiving, people who continually engage tend to be healthier and live longer.  This must be tempered by a heavy dose of common sense as joining a Justin Bieber fan club will immediately result in brain atrophy.

5)  They are religious.

This one surprised me, given the whole martyr thing, but people who attend some form of religious service once a week tend to be healthier, as a group, than those who stay at home and do secular humanist things.  No one religion has a monopoly on this characteristic (sorry Rev.Osteen) but it seems having faith, practicing your beliefs, and living by the creeds of your particular orthodoxy has a beneficial effect on health.  That is assuming you are not a devotee of the Crusades or a militant extremist as their lifespans tend to be about as long as a Kardashian marriage.

6)  They de-stress.

Stress kills.  From hypertension to depression, daily stress can put more holes in your body than whiskers on a gerbil…and that’s a lot by the way.  Some studies have shown that up to 70% of visits to primary care doctors are due to stress.  If Obamacare would get rid of stress it might even work, unfortunately it seems to be having just the opposite effect.  There are a number of ways to minimize stress and none start with X A N A X. Flower arranging,counseling, exercise, yoga, meditation, hunting, full contact karate, and attending city council meetings are just a few stress relieving activities available to the general public.

7) They serve others.

Volunteerism confers as much health benefit as a daily vitamin and generally cost less and won’t constipate you.  The data is conclusive, if you focus on the needs of others and help them meet those needs, you will improve your health.  You will be better psychologically, physically, people will like you, and dogs will lick your face.  Believe me, no matter how miserable and decrepit your life is, someone, somewhere has it much worse, and it behooves you and the universe to find that person and help make their life just a bit more tolerable.