Well, guys (gals), I have some bad news. We’re not getting any younger.
By no means am I calling you (us) old, but the truth is, we should all start paying more attention to our long-term health and a little less about what works best in the moment.
All too often we settle for what’s cheapest, most convenient or most temporarily satisfying— even if those things aren’t doing anything to our advantage.
AND, since I know quitting any habit cold turkey isn’t the easiest thing to do, I have a challenge for you that I, um, borrowed from the Discovery Channel documentary, Racing Extinction. The film about man-made mass extinction challenges people around the world to make a big change with the phrase, “Start with 1 thing.”
“Start with 1 thing,” challenges people—you, in this case—to choose one specific, small-scale change to focus on in your daily life. Make one small change in your everyday life for one week, and that change gets easier. In one month, it’s a habit. And by the second month, you’re ready for a new challenge and change.
Here, I’ve compiled a list of a few of the most common unhealthy, unproductive and all around crappy “things” that too many of us college students should kick to the curb:
1. Drinking soda/pop (EVEN DIET!!!)
Trust me, this is as hard for me to accept as it is for anyone. Soda is SO bad for our bodies— not just from the crazy amounts of sugar they’re loaded with, but also by the chemical flavorings, dyes and carbonation. Even diet sodas wreak havoc on our insides (R.I.P. to my beloved Diet Coke), as the artificial sweeteners pollute our bodies and, sadly, affect our bodies’ fat storage behavior the exact same way regular sodas do.
Try ditching the pop and going for an unsweetened, naturally flavored seltzer water (like La Croix or Canada Dry), or just stick with good old H20! Your body will thank you!
2. Not getting enough sleep
“I’ll sleep when I’m dead,” “YOLO!” “Just 3 more episodes!”
There are tons of excuses we all find to cut our sleeping time down to the bare minimum. And while it might feel like you’re invincible and coffee will be your savior, not getting your full eight hours of sleep is affecting you in ways you don’t even realize.
According to Huffington Post, not getting enough sleep leads to increased hunger and weight gain, clumsiness, forgetfulness, lower sex drive and a higher likelihood of getting sick—and those are just a few side effects. Now, was finishing season 5 in one night really worth it?
Start taking a little more affirmative action with your sleep schedule. If you’re going to go out and stay up late, make sure you have time to sleep a little longer in the morning. If you know you’ve got to get up at the crack of friggin’ dawn, get to bed! It’s not hard, ladies, but it definitely makes a difference.
3. Tanning
Again, I hate to accept this one as much as the next girl. Who doesn’t feel prettier with a little bit of color!? Despite the confidence boost tanning beds can provide, they’re literally sun coffins.
According to the American Academy of Dermatology, “Using indoor tanning beds before age 35 can increase your risk of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, by 59 percent; the risk increases with each use.”
Um, scary. Especially when you start thinking about the real, life-threatening effects of skin cancer. And about how your skin cancer could affect your friends, family and loved ones. Not okay.
If you’re still not convinced to ditch the bed membership for spray tans and a good bronzer, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4jgUcxMezM
I dare you not to cry.
4. Eating fast and/or fake food
If you’re eating at a place where you can buy 10 chicken nuggets for less than $1.50, the food there probably isn’t good for you. If the ingredient list contains words you can’t pronounce, that’s probably not good for you either.
Again, this is a harsh reality, especially in the fast-paced, food-loving world we live in. I’m not saying that you or anyone should (or can) quite fast food cold turkey. All I’m saying is that we probably shouldn’t make a habit of eating fast/processed food for 85-90% of our meals. Not only are our bodies going to start hating us, but our wallets will too.
Make an effort to cook a decent dinner for yourself at least once a week—you know, a protein, a carb, and a fat that isn’t in the form of a McSomething. It’ll make a difference!
5. Living inside the screen
We all say we try not to, but we all do it. Unfortunately, we’re all about to enter a very real world where knowing what Kanye Tweeted 20 minutes ago is about as useful as a poopy flavored lollipop.
Sure, Twitter and our CNN apps shoot us news updates, but we need to be a bit more proactive in observing and learning about the world around us. Dedicate some time every day, or even a couple days a week, to browse through the World and Local News in a newspaper (or online if you must). Also, make a point to really listen to what others are saying and doing around you, and take time to think about those things. Your older, more worldly and sophisticated self will thank you.
So I challenge you, HC readers, to choose one of the above (or come up with one of your own) challenges to #StartWith1Thing. Cheers and best of luck to you and your better, healthier future self!
Photos from Google Images and http://racingextinction.com/startwith1thing/
Video from YouTube