As a man, self-care can sometimes go neglected when building out a lifestyle plan. However, self-care has both mental and physical benefits that cannot be ignored. When focusing on developing a healthy lifestyle, take the time to address self-care to start improving your all-around health.

What Does a Healthy Lifestyle Entail?

Developing a pattern of healthy living can be complicated given that it’s dependent on who a person is. However, as outlined by the American Heart Association’s Essential 8, there are a few specific factors all people should emphasize in their life:

Eating better
Staying active by exercising
Avoiding drugs
Getting the recommended amount of sleep
Managing weight
Controlling their cholesterol
Managing blood sugar
Managing blood pressure

As a whole, a healthy lifestyle will promote all of the above and lead to health benefits that a person might not have seen prior to developing their lifestyle habits.

Why is Self-Care Important?

Most of the above lifestyle aspects revolve around physical health, but self-care goes beyond this form of health. Self-care simply refers to taking the time out of your day to do things that you enjoy. When it comes to your overall health, it’s been shown that self-care can reduce the risk of developing certain diseases, while also helping a person to regulate stress and increase their energy.

What Does Self-Care Encompass?

Self-care is about more than seeking out legal assistance to help with a personal injury, as an example, given that it includes both the physical and mental aspects of health. To that end, self-care routines typically encompass some of the following:

Focusing on improving hygiene
Reducing stressors in daily life
Seeking medical care for any reason
Researching new activities that may bring you joy
Taking up new hobbies

5 Tips for Working Self-Care into Your Lifestyle as a Man

Focusing on balancing physical and mental health when working self-care into your lifestyle routine can be a challenge, but the following five tips can help you get the best of both worlds:

Listen To Your Body

More often than not, your body know what it is talking about. If you feel like you need to take a rest day from going to the gym, then take that day to let your muscles recover, rather than overworking them. Additionally, if you have an inkling that something is wrong health-wise, then don’t hesitate to visit your PCP to discuss what may be going on.

Build A Routine

One of the best ways to develop healthy self-care habits is to start to build an effective routine in your daily life. This means trying to wake up and go to sleep at the same time, planning out times of the day to go to the gym or to cook, and other similar routine tasks.

Always Make Sleep A Priority

It’s recommended that most adults get at least seven hours of sleep a night, but ideally eight. While life can certainly be busy, no one should sacrifice sleep due to the mental and physical benefits it brings. After all, it’s been shown that going longer than 24 hours without sleep has similar mental effects to a person being under the influence.

Eat Regular Meals And Stay Hydrated

Eating regularly throughout the day and planning the nutritional aspects of that meal can allow a person to see numerous health benefits that they may not have noticed before. Your body is a temple and your mood and energy are often a reflection of what you eat. Start to eat cleaner foods at a consistent rate to potentially see health benefits you never saw before.

Set Achievable Goals For Yourself

Finally, setting goals for yourself is always important, but it’s more important to set achievable goals. To that end, consider setting a major long-term goal that has a number of short-term milestones which can be met, each of which leads toward the end-goal. This will help provide motivation in your daily life, rather than making you feel as if you are falling further and further from your large goal.

Bolster Your Health Today

Constantly improving your physical and mental health is one of the best ways to start leading a more fulfilled life. Rather than settling for your current state of mind, actively take the steps needed to start changing your life for the better. Focus on addressing any mental or physical challenges by developing an effective lifestyle plan that allows you to be the best version of yourself.