Good Health On a Dime

Source: Crystal Wang, used with permission

This guest post was contributed by Crystal Wang, a graduate student in the USC Psychology Department's Clinical Science program.

When you think of what defines a healthy lifestyle, what immediately comes to mind? Perhaps you’re imagining yoga studios and unpronounceable vitamins and $7 kale smoothies. Perhaps you’re imagining juice fasts, Hugh Jackman’s 5,000 calories-a-day “Wolverine diet,” or attractive, glowing 20-somethings jogging on the beach in their matching Nike gear. Quick question — where did you get these images of healthy lifestyles from? Is it from following the Kardashians and their luxurious beach romps? Or admiring Kanye’s thousand-dollar Adidas shoes? Or maybe you’ve been on goop.com too long and have been influenced by Gwyneth Paltrow’s vegan detoxes. But most of us don’t have the luxury to live like Hollywood stars and, believe it or not, you don’t need a personal trainer and you definitely don’t need to shell out a month’s rent at Whole Foods for gluten-free, sugar-free, joy-free groceries in order to live a healthier lifestyle.

Source: Forthwithlife, Creative Commons license

In fact, there is evidence that immersing yourself in comparisons with these multi-millionaire celebrities can be harmful for your health. Research shows that subjective social economic status, or the way you view yourself in comparison to others, is a better predictor of chronic stress and negative health outcomes than objective SES (e.g., income, education, etc.). This means that indulging yourself in too many late-night Instagram binges might actually have negative psychological and physiological consequences on your well-being. This may also be why our diets fail so often. By comparing ourselves to the beautiful, rich fitness gurus that grace our home feeds, we may be implicitly holding ourselves up to higher standards. And when we fail to achieve the perfectly sculpted bodies of these Instagram models, we may feel discouraged, and become less likely to continue with our diets and exercise routines as a result.

The media likes to glorify the incredible fitness accomplishments of celebrities. But we can’t all be like Beyoncé and squeeze into corsets mere weeks after the birth of our twins, or devote hours every day to the gym like Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson for our 12-pack abs. We simply don’t have the time or cash to access their armies of nutritionists, trainers, and stylists. But does this mean that we just give up? No. You don’t need millions of dollars or weeks of free time to devote at the gym in order to adopt a healthier lifestyle. And here are three simple ways you can improve your health, and consequently, your quality of life, without breaking the bank:

1. Diet. This one is a no-brainer for all of us. We’ve probably had the benefits of healthy eating drilled into us since birth. But eating well is easier said than done. If you’re anything like me, after a long day at work, all you want to do is curl up on the couch with a burger and a couple of beers. It makes sense, right? In order to make a healthy meal, you would have to go to the grocery store (which, depending on where you live, might be quite a distance away), spend exorbitant amounts on fresh produce that is bound to expire in mere days, then toil away in the kitchen for hours. But what if I told you that it didn’t have to be this way? How, you may ask? Two words: Meal prepping. This is simply the act of preparing your meals ahead of time, so that you can just grab and go throughout your week. You just spend a few hours over the weekend cooking, then you pop the meals into the freezer and are set for the rest of the week. It’s cheaper and quicker than getting fast-food or take out. And for those of you who may be concerned with the freshness of frozen meals: there is now research showing that frozen fruits and vegetables may actually be healthier than fresh ones. This may not be as glamorous as the three-dollar sign salmon, acai, and Kombucha brunches you see celebrities enjoying in their hipster Beverly Hills cafes, but it’s impossible for us to compare to these people who must showcase their aesthetics for a living. And comparing ourselves to these people might make us feel dispirited and less likely to continue with our diets. And for those of us who work long hours or simply can’t afford gourmet cuisine, meal prepping may be the way of the future.

2. Exercise. This is also something that we all know is good for us, but we might not be aware of just how important it is. Not only does exercise help us fit in our pants better, but it actually decreases our risk for heart disease and cognitive decline. In addition, it can reduce stress, improve mood, and even bolster our sex lives. And all it takes is 20-minutes of cardio on a regular basis. However, this doesn’t mean that you have to sign up for expensive gym memberships or attend strange flying trapeze classes in order to achieve these benefits. Just a jog outdoors or simply pulling up an instructional cardio routine on https://www.fitnessblender.com can lead to all of these health benefits, as long as it’s done regularly. It might be difficult at first to begin a workout routine, especially for those of us who aren’t used to regular exercise. But don’t get discouraged when you don’t look like those fitspo images you post all over the fridge. It can take weeks, or even months for any progress to show. Fitness is less about quick superficial changes that won’t last, and more about lifestyle changes. So take down those unhelpful fitspo images, and remember to be kind to yourself.

3. Relaxation. Recently, the importance of stress reduction and self-care has been emphasized in mainstream culture. And for good reason—chronic stress can suppress immune function and is related to numerous aversive health consequences such as increased risk for obesity, cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and even some forms of cancer. And chronic stress can be caused by a variety of different factors, such as poverty, discrimination, illness, sleep deprivation, and demanding jobs. Self-care is definitely necessary to help us get through the demands of our stressful days; however what we envision as self-care might be biased by our impressions of luxurious spa packages and expensive meditation classes. But the beautiful thing about meditation is that you don’t need classes or personal life gurus to help you achieve its benefits. You can act as your own Deepak Chopra with a guided meditation video on YouTube or by playing a tutorial off the ultra-helpful Headspace app.

Source: Taxcredits, Creative Commons license

Chances are, we’ll never wake up rich and famous with a squadron of dietitians and fitness trainers waiting on us hand and foot. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t take steps towards improving our mental and physical health in easy and affordable ways. All you need is a bit of information and creativity. The seemingly simplest lifestyle changes might make the biggest differences: meal-prepping, 20-minutes of cardio, and taking a bit of time every day for self-care. Oh, and of course, limiting your time on Kim Kardashian’s Instagram.