What does the term “healthy lifestyle” mean to you?

We often ask ourselves if our lifestyle is healthy. Whether we live long and happily very much depends on how we live and how we treat our bodies.

The most obvious health safe-guarding steps are the following: regular checkups, exercising every day, quitting smoking, shedding excessive weight, controlling daily stress, relaxing and sleeping enough. Also eating well is a very important thing.

As far as a diet is concerned, we should always give priority to simple wholefood over richer and meatier fatty products. We should choose healthy products such as lean meat, fish, wholemeal bread, low-fat cottage cheese, skimmed milk or yoghurt, fresh fruit and vegetables because they contain vitamins and minerals which are good for our health. But we should avoid chips, cookies, pies, sweets, sauces, spaghetti, hot-dogs, hamburgers, stews or fatty meat, alcohol and coffee.

If possible, we should eat regularly five times a day to digest the food properly and our diet shouldn’t only be balanced but also varied. A healthy diet is the cornerstone of our well-being.

A well-balanced diet helps us keep healthy but it must be combined with some regular physical activities such as walking, jogging, cycling or swimming. By exercising 20-30 minutes a day 5-6 times a week, we will not only burn off some extra calories but we will also become fit, strong and full of energy.

Another important thing for our health is sleep and rest. We should also take care of our psychological health. We must accept ourselves and adopt a positive attitude towards life and other people. If we are too busy or overworked, we should slow down and find some time for our family, hobbies, rest and entertainment.

However, that is not everthing. Giving up such bad habits as drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes that cause serious diseases is equally important. Therefore, if we don’t want to fall ill we should give up smoking altogether.

Summing up, the recipe for good health is simple: less unhealthy food, more exercise, less stress, more joy and fewer sorrows.