5 Healthy Habits To Unleash Amazing Results For Life And Business

By Matthew Ricketts

Amazing business results don’t happen by chance. Healthy habits, just like our business habits take hard work, focus, and dedication. In creating a great business many small business owners say they just don’t have time to work out, or time to eat right. And I have been there as well. Too much to do, and too little time to squeeze it all in, let alone go to the gym, eat right, or take time for myself. The results of this have been that I have put off my health for far too long, and now I will have to work twice as hard to get back in shape and stay that way.

However the funny thing is. By taking the time to focus on yourself you can unleash incredible business results. When you are in incredible health (or working on getting there), you will have way more energy to get things done, need less sleep, accomplish more in less time, improve your mood, be more creative, and be a better you in almost every way. This article is all about simple ideas that you can use to focus on your health to improve your business results.

Well all that sounds great right? However many of know we should focus on our health, but still can’t seem to find the time. So I am going to propose 5 simple tips that you can start today and begin your focus on incredible health. These are the 5 most important things that I am now doing to put myself on a lifetime of great health, and in turn create incredible energy, and these 5 healthy habits will help create amazing business results.

1. Get up earlier. Try 5 AM. By getting up 2 hours earlier each day you will add nearly 15 hours of productive time to your week. And now that your up, you might as well put 20 to 30 minutes toward jump starting your day. No gym needed simply get a yoga mat out and get to work. Yogamazing is a great source and they even have an app that allows you to view up to 50 past yoga classes. Take another 20 minutes to sit in silence and focus. It might seem a little bit new age, but the practice is incredibly calming, and has profound effects throughout the rest of your day. Other “problems” that you face later that day, can be calmly reclassified as challenges to overcome. The next 20 minutes of your morning, make sure you eat a healthy meal. The personal trainer of The Biggest Loser fame, Jillian Michaels has a great website that you can use for your weekly meal planning, grocery shopping, food journalling, and track your results. When you start your day fueled up on the right foods, your energy will last longer, with less swings, and no crash.

2. Get a massage. I know that sounds like an indulgence, but top level athletes, and others working at peak performance get regular massages. Try to get one as often as once per week, but at least once per month. It will increase your circulation, release endorphins, and help you relax among many other health benefits. And with the increased circulation and oxygen to your muscle tissue, you will recover quicker from tough workouts. And I realize that this may seem a bit extravagant, but we justify all kinds of expensive marketing and tools for our business because it will make us more money. I think the same thing about a good massage. It pays for itself in increased energy and business results. Invest in yourself for once.

3. Eat less food and drink more water. Portions have gotten out of control, and most of don’t drink nearly enough water. You will be surprised at how much better you will feel by eating more meals each day (albeit much smaller meals), and increasing your water intake to at least 8 glasses. In addition to keeping your energy up and reducing energy spikes throughout the day, it takes a lot of energy to digest a big meal. How do you feel after eating at the buffet? After the third plate your pretty much ready for a nap. And while I love a good nap from time to time, there is nothing worse than having things to get done, and no energy to do them. Along those same lines, don’t eat late in the evening. It takes a lot of energy to digest food, and if you eat before bed, you will actually interfere with getting your best rest.

4. Get a personal trainer. If you go to the gym on your own, you will never push yourself as hard as your trainer will. One session with a trainer a week should be enough, and they can give you a written plan to follow for the rest of the week till you see them again. Think of it as a Last Chance workout like on the Biggest Loser. A workout that pushes you to the limits and helps you breakthrough to the next level of fitness. Again think of this an investment in yourself, versus an expense. Go out and use that increased energy to grow your business, create more income, and make your investment really pay off.

5. Build health into your schedule and set goals. Just like you have to plan to succeed in business. You must do the same with your health. Each hour of your day should be mapped out and planned in advance. When you wake up, workout, eat, need to be all included into your daily schedule. And as for goal setting, set S.M.A.R.T goals that Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time oriented. So instead of saying I need to lose some weigh. Say I need to lose 52 pounds by December 31st, 2013. That is just one pound a week. And you can measure that at regular intervals, it is achievable, and realistic, and has a stated time to achieve it by.

I hope that you will take up the challenge to improve your health in 2013. As a former airline pilot I think of it like this. You wouldn’t take off on a long flight without planning out the fuel needed to get there. You would plan it out carefully and make sure that you had enough gas to get there. But many of us treat our health like that. We are flying around with empty tanks and at some point we are going to crash. Let’s turn that around to today. Let’s make our health as small business people our top priority, because in my mind, your health is your wealth.